[Low birth-weight neonates in Tunisia (author's transl)]

From a prospective analysis performed in a maternity-hospital in Tunis, incidence, characteristic features and etiologic factors responsible for birth-weight below 2,5000 g have been studied. Incidence of low birth-weight is accepted as an indicator of the level of health care in a country; this incidence, established from 6,028 living births was 7.2%, similar to that in developed countries. On the contrary, intra-uterine growth retardation rates of 69.6% and prematures rates of 30.4% are closer to those in developing countries. Altogether, anomalies of height and of the height/head circumference ratio were present in 36 children only and, in 12 out the these, abnormalities of the placenta or membranes or evidence of fetal disease were found. A factor responsible for low birth weight was found in 182 neonates: previous severe disease in the mother (7.7%), toxemia (9.4%) twin pregnancy (22.41%), fetal pathology (3.5%) and pathology of the placenta and membranes (4.6%).