Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes Among Immigrant Women in the US and Europe: A Systematic Review

Human migration is not a new phenomenon, but it has changed significantly with the advance of globalization. We focus on differences in the published literature concerning migration and health (EU vs the US), centering specifically on reproductive health outcomes. We conducted a literature search in the Pubmed and Embase databases. We reviewed papers that contrast migrants to native-born populations and analyzed differences between countries as well as challenges for future research. The prevalence of low birthweight among migrants varies by the host country characteristics as well as the composition of migrants to different regions. The primary driver of migrant health is the migrant "regime" in different countries at specific periods of time. Future health outcomes of immigrants will depend on the societal characteristics (legal protections, institutions and health systems) of host countries.