Prevalence, mortality and risk factors associated with very low birth weight preterm infants: an analysis of 33 years.

Objective: To assess the prevalence, mortality and risk factors associated with the birth of very low birth weight preterm infants over a period of 33 years.

Methods: Four cross-sectional studies were analyzed, using data from perinatal interviews of birth cohorts in the city of Pelotas collected in 1982, 1993, 2004, and 2015. Based on perinatal questionnaires, anthropometric measurements of newborns and death certificates were analyzed to obtain the prevalence rate, neonatal mortality, and risk factors (maternal age, income and type of delivery) for very low birth weight.