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Background: Musculoskeletal changes occur during pregnancy; one-half of pregnant women experienced low back pain and/or pelvic pain during pregnancy. Prescription opioid use for Medicaid enrolled pregnant women has increased dramatically due to severe low back pain/pelvic pain. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the prevalence of low back pain/pelvic pain and related risk factors among a broader population. Design: This is a retrospective cohort study. Methods: This study utilized de-identified Medicaid claims data provided by the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office, including individuals who gave birth between 2016 and 2021 during pregnancy. Low back pain/pelvic pain and a group of musculoskeletal risk factors were identified with International Classification of Diseases v10. Comparisons were made for the prevalence of low back pain and pelvic pain between those with pregnancy-related musculoskeletal risk and those without. Results: Among 167,396 pregnancies, 65.6% were affected by musculoskeletal risk factors. The overall prevalence of low back pain was 15.6%, and of pregnancy-related pelvic pain was 25.2%. The overall prevalence for either low back pain or pelvic pain was 33.3% (increased from 29.5% in 2016 to 35.3% in 2021), with 24.6% being pregnancy-induced. Pregnancies with musculoskeletal risk factors were more likely to be diagnosed with low back pain (20.7% versus 5.7%, p < 0.001) or pelvic pain (35.3% versus 6.0%, p < 0.001) than those without. Conclusion: This study found a very high prevalence of musculoskeletal risk and a high prevalence of low back pain or pelvic pain, with an increasing trend, among South Carolina pregnancies enrolled in Medicaid during the period 2016–2021. Most of the diagnosed low back pain or pelvic pain were pregnancy induced. Musculoskeletal risk factors were associated with low back pain or pelvic pain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To understand the characteristics of infants admitted to US NICUs., Study Design: 2006-2014 linked birth certificate and hospital discharge data for potentially viable deliveries in Pennsylvania and South Carolina were used. NICU admissions were identified using revenue codes. NICU-admitted infants were categorized by gestational age (GA), birthweight, and condition severity (for GA 35+ weeks). We also assessed total patient days and trends over time., Results: 12% of infants were admitted to a NICU; 13.6% were GA < 32 weeks (45.3% of total days); 36.1% were GA 32-36 weeks (31.2% of total days); and 50.4% were GA 37+ weeks (23.5% of total days). 20% of admissions were for infants with GA 35+ weeks and mild conditions. Admissions increased numerically from 11.2% (2006) to 13.0% (2014), with increases among infants 35+ weeks., Conclusion: Most NICU admissions are for infants 35+ weeks GA, many with mild conditions who may be accommodated in well-baby units., (© 2024. This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.)

Background: Few studies have examined secular trends in gestational weight gain (GWG) and findings are inconsistent. Parallel to increasing trends in pre‐pregnancy obesity, we hypothesised similar increasing GWG trends. Objectives: The study examined trends in GWG in South Carolina (SC), using methods to reduce bias. We also examined whether the 12‐year trends in GWG varied according to race/ethnicity and pre‐pregnancy weight. Methods: Data came from SC birth certificates, 2004 to 2015. We calculated standardised GWG z‐scores (GWGZ), using smoothed reference values to account for gestational age and pre‐pregnancy body mass index. Quantile regression was used to examine trends in GWGZ, adjusting for pre‐pregnancy weight status, race/ethnicity, parity, WIC participation, smoking during pregnancy, residence, age, and birth cohort. Results: Among 615 093 women, the mean GWGZ was −0.4 (SD = 1.3), which increased from −0.4 in 2004‐2005 to −0.2 in 2014‐2015. GWGZ increased at the 5th, 10th, 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles (ranging 0.04 to 0.73 units), with differential trends observed in sub‐groups by pre‐pregnancy weight and racial/ethnic group. Notably, non‐Hispanic White women showed larger increasing trends (0.89 units) compared to non‐Hispanic Black (0.55 units) and Hispanic (0.76 units) women in the 5th percentile. Decreasing trends were seen overall for the 90th (−0.02) and 95th percentile (−0.06 units) but positive trends were not seen among women experiencing obese class 1 (no change in 90th and 95th), and 2 (0.01 units in 90th, −0.02 units in 95th). Conclusions: This study shows increasing GWGZ trends from the 5th to the 75th percentiles and decreasing trends in 90th and 95th percentiles in SC for the last decade. Racial/ethnic and pre‐pregnancy weight disparities did not improve over the study period. Future research is needed to confirm these findings in other states and to develop strategies to narrow racial and pre‐pregnancy weight disparities at the highest and lowest percentiles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]