Determinants of birth weight in Vietnamese detainees in Hong Kong

Five hundred and fifty singleton pregnancies amongst Vietnamese Boat People delivering between January and December 1993 were studied post-natally. Multiple regression analysis showed no direct effect of ethnic origin on birth weight. When analyses were repeated on the two main ethnic subgroups we found that, amongst Anamese patients, both gestation at delivery and birth weight independently increased with longer duration of stay in Hong Kong. This relationship was not seen in Vietnamese patients of Chinese ethnic origin. Possible reasons for these different relationships are discussed.