Official Site of The State of New Jersey
Preterm Births by Mother's Race/Ethnicity, New Jersey, 2000 to 2022
Indicator Report Data View Options
Why Is This Important?
Prematurity increases the risk for infant morbidity and mortality. Infants born preterm are at greater risk of dying in the first month of life. Preterm infants may require intensive care at birth and are at higher risk of developmental disabilities and chronic illnesses throughout life. They are more likely to require special education services. Health care costs and length of hospital stay are higher for preterm infants. The more preterm an infant is born, the more severe the health problems are likely to be.
Definition
Percent of live births before 37 weeks of gestation based on obstetric estimate Preterm is synonymous with premature. Infants born before 37 weeks of pregnancy are considered preterm and those born at or after 37 weeks of pregnancy are called full term. Most pregnancies last around 40 weeks.
Data Notes
Data for White, Black, and Asian do not include Hispanics. Hispanic ethnicity includes persons of any race.Data Source
Birth Certificate Database, Office of Vital Statistics and Registry, New Jersey Department of Health(https://www.nj.gov/health/vital/)
How the Measure is Calculated
Numerator:
Number of births born before 37 weeks of gestation based on obstetric estimateDenominator:
Total number of live births
Related Health Objectives and Indicators
Health Initiative: HP2030
Healthy People 2030 Objective MICH-07
U.S. Target: Reduce preterm births to 9.4 percent of live births by 2030
https://health.gov/healthypeople/objectives-and-data/browse-objectives/pregnancy-and-childbirth/reduce-preterm-births-mich-07
Health Initiative: HP2020
Healthy People 2020 Objective MICH-9.1
U.S. Target: Reduce total preterm births to 9.4 percent of live births by 2020
https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/maternal-infant-and-child-health
Health Initiative: EPHT
Environmental Public Health Tracking Indicator RBO-13
Description: Preterm (< 37 weeks gestation) and very preterm (< 32 weeks gestation) births among singletons
https://ephtracking.cdc.gov/indicatorPages?selectedContentAreaAbbreviation=8&selectedIndicatorId=13