Treatment effects of maternal micronutrient supplementation vary by percentiles of the birth weight distribution in rural Nepal.

Does the effect of micronutrient supplementation on neonatal survival vary with respect to the percentiles of the birth weight distribution?

Scientific Background: In developing countries, higher infant mortality is partially caused by poor maternal and fetal nutrition. Clinical trials of micronutrient supplementation are aimed at reducing the risk of infant mortality by increasing birth weight. Because infant mortality is greatest among the low birth weight infants (LBW) (≤ 2500 grams), an effective intervention may need to increas...

Effects of alternative maternal micronutrient supplements on low birth weight in rural Nepal: double blind randomised community trial.

OBJECTIVE To assess the impact on birth size and risk of low birth weight of alternative combinations of micronutrients given to pregnant women. DESIGN Double blind cluster randomised controlled trial. SETTING Rural community in south eastern Nepal. PARTICIPANTS 4926 pregnant women and 4130 live born infants. INTERVENTIONS 426 communities were randomised to five regimens in which pregna...

Does the Effect of Micronutrient Supplementation on Neonatal Survival Vary with Respect to the Percentiles of the Birth Weight

Antenatal and postnatal iron supplementation and childhood mortality in rural Nepal: a prospective follow-up in a randomized, controlled community trial.

The long-term benefits of antenatal iron supplementation in child survival are not known. In 1999-2001, 4,926 pregnant women in rural Nepal participated in a cluster-randomized, double-masked, controlled trial involving 4 alternative combinations of micronutrient supplements, each containing vitamin A. The authors examined the impact on birth weight and early infant mortality in comparison with...

Estimating percentile-specific treatment effects in counterfactual models: a case-study of micronutrient supplementation, birth weight and infant mortality

Clinical trials of micronutrient supplementation are aimed at reducing the risk of infant mortality by increasing birth weight. Because infant mortality is greatest among the low birth weight (LBW) infants (2500 g or under), an effective intervention increases the birth weight among the smallest babies. The paper defines population and counterfactual parameters for estimating the treatment effe...