BACKGROUND: Despite concerns about worsening pregnancy outcomes resulting from healthcare restrictions, economic difficulties and increased stress during the COVID-19 pandemic, preterm birth (PTB) rates declined in some countries in 2020, while stillbirth rates appeared stable. Like other shocks, the pandemic may have exacerbated existing socioeconomic disparities in pregnancy, but this remains to be established. Our objective was to investigate changes in PTB and stillbirth by socioeconomic status (SES) in European countries. METHODS: The Euro-Peristat network implemented this study within the Population Health Information Research Infrastructure (PHIRI) project. A common data model was developed to collect aggregated tables from routine birth data for 2015-2020. SES was based on mother's educational level or area-level deprivation/maternal occupation if education was unavailable and harmonized into low, medium and high SES. Country-specific relative risks (RRs) of PTB and stillbirth for March to December 2020, adjusted for linear trends from 2015 to 2019, by SES group were pooled using random effects meta-analysis. RESULTS: Twenty-one countries provided data on perinatal outcomes by SES. PTB declined by an average 4% in 2020 {pooled RR: 0.96 [95% confidence intervals (CIs): 0.94-0.97]} with similar estimates across all SES groups. Stillbirths rose by 5% [RR: 1.05 (95% CI: 0.99-1.10)], with increases of between 3 and 6% across the three SES groups, with overlapping confidence limits. CONCLUSIONS: PTB decreases were similar regardless of SES group, while stillbirth rates rose without marked differences between groups.
- MeSH
- COVID-19 * epidemiologie MeSH
- disparity zdravotního stavu MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- narození mrtvého plodu * epidemiologie MeSH
- novorozenec MeSH
- pandemie MeSH
- předčasný porod * epidemiologie MeSH
- SARS-CoV-2 * MeSH
- socioekonomické faktory MeSH
- socioekonomické nerovnosti ve zdraví MeSH
- společenská třída MeSH
- těhotenství MeSH
- výsledek těhotenství epidemiologie MeSH
- Check Tag
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- novorozenec MeSH
- těhotenství MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- Geografické názvy
- Evropa MeSH
