SynthesisBulletin of the World Health Organization2010
The worldwide incidence of preterm birth: a systematic review of maternal mortality and morbidity.
Synthesis in Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 2010. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 5 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 777 papers, 10 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Antenatal Care Health Education Intervened by Social Networking on Mobile Phone Compared With Usual Care to Improve Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes: Randomized Controlled Trial
Aspirin Supplementation for Pregnancy Indicated Risk Reduction In Nulliparas (ASPIRIN)
Clinical Use of a Neonatal MRI System
Quantifying the Mechanical Environment of Pregnancy Complicated With a Short Cervix With Ultrasound Imaging and Aspiration - Ancillary Study to the Trial of Pessary in Singleton Pregnancies Trial
Cervical Stiffness Measurement in Cervical Insufficiency
Who cites it
777 citing papers in PubMed, 10 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 2,145 citations in OpenAlex.
- Susceptible window identification of the relationship between maternal ozone exposure and preterm birth.International health · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Maternal care for preterm infants in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative systematic review.Cadernos de saude publica · 2025Pooled it
- Donor human milk versus infant formula for low-risk infants: a systematic review.Pediatric research · 2025Pooled it
- Early EEG and NIRS measurements in preterm babies: a systematic review.European journal of pediatrics · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Vitamin a supplementation during pregnancy in shaping child growth outcomes: A meta-analysis.Critical reviews in food science and nutrition · 2023Pooled it
- Relationship Between Outdoor Air Pollutant Exposure and Premature Delivery in China- Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International journal of public health · 2023Pooled it
- Knowledge, attitude and practice towards kangaroo mother care among postnatal women in Ethiopia: Systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2022Pooled it
- Preterm birth and its associated factors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.African health sciences · 2021Pooled it
- A randomised feasibility tolerability study of aminophylline for the prevention of preterm labour.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Trial
- Comparison of the Effectiveness of Beraksurf and Curosurf Exogenous Surfactants in the Treatment of Respiratory Distress Syndrome in Preterm Neonates: A Double-blind Randomized Study in the West of Iran.Current pediatric reviews · 2025Trial
- Early developmental support for preterm infants based on exploratory behaviors: A parallel randomized controlled study.Brain and behavior · 2023Trial
- Trial
- Global, regional, and national burden of early-onset and late-onset colorectal cancer, 1990-2021: a comparative analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021.Future science OA · 2026Article
- Self-assessment risk scoring system for early screening of preterm birth in low resource settings.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Article
- Neonatal Outcomes Following Preterm Birth Between 28 and 36 Weeks' Gestation in Vietnam: A Cohort Study.The Australian & New Zealand journal of obstetrics & gynaecology · 2026Article
- The Relationship Between Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy and PreLabor Rupture of Membranes in Ethiopia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.Health science reports · 2026Review
- IL-37 alleviates inflammatory effects and NLRP3 inflammasome activation in LPS-induced preterm birth.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Outcomes and management strategies of pregnancies after heart and lung transplantation across Europe.JHLT open · 2026Article
717 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 6 institutions in 4 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo analyse preterm birth rates worldwide to assess the incidence of this public health problem, map the regional distribution of preterm births and gain insight into existing assessment strategies.
methodsData on preterm birth rates worldwide were extracted during a previous systematic review of published and unpublished data on maternal mortality and morbidity reported between 1997 and 2002. Those data were supplemented through a complementary search covering the period 2003-2007. Region-specific multiple regression models were used to estimate the preterm birth rates for countries with no data.
findingsWe estimated that in 2005, 12.9 million births, or 9.6% of all births worldwide, were preterm. Approximately 11 million (85%) of these preterm births were concentrated in Africa and Asia, while about 0.5 million occurred in each of Europe and North America (excluding Mexico) and 0.9 million in Latin America and the Caribbean. The highest rates of preterm birth were in Africa and North America (11.9% and 10.6% of all births, respectively), and the lowest were in Europe (6.2%).
conclusionPreterm birth is an important perinatal health problem across the globe. Developing countries, especially those in Africa and southern Asia, incur the highest burden in terms of absolute numbers, although a high rate is also observed in North America. A better understanding of the causes of preterm birth and improved estimates of the incidence of preterm birth at the country level are needed to improve access to effective obstetric and neonatal care.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.