Table of Contents

INDIANA NATALITY REPORT
2010

A: Glossary of Terms


Age-specific Birth Rate - The number of live births for a specific age group for every 1,000 women in that age group.

Alcohol Use during Pregnancy - This information was self-reported by the mother.  The revised birth certificate, which Indiana adopted in 2007, does not collect this information.

Birthweight - The amount a liveborn infant weighs at birth.

County of Occurrence - The Indiana county where the mother gave birth.  She may or may not be an Indiana resident.

County of Residence - The mother's Indiana county of residence at the time she gave birth, regardless of where she gave birth.

Crude Birth Rate - The number of live births per 1,000 population in a year.

Ethnicity - In Indiana, "Hispanic" is classified as an individual's ethnicity, not his or her race; all Hispanics are classified as either "white Hispanic", "black Hispanic", or "other Hispanic".  Please see Preface for OMB standards regarding ethnicity.  Characteristics of births to Hispanic women are examined in Table 38 of this report.

Fetal Death - Death prior to completed delivery of a fetus of 20 or more weeks gestation.  Another term for this is stillbirth.  Fetal death data are in the Indiana Mortality Reports in Tables 10a and 10b.

First Trimester - The first three months of pregnancy.

General Fertility Rate (GFR) - The number of live births per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 in a year.  Women in this age group are considered to be of childbearing age by historical convention.

Gestation - Weeks of pregnancy as reported on the certificate of live birth.

Length of Gestation - The number of weeks since the last menstrual period began.  In 1989, the "clinical estimate of gestation" was added to the birth certificate.  In this report, the clinical estimate is used to determine length of gestation rather than the date of the last normal menstrual cycle.  When the clinical estimate is missing, the length of gestation is calculated from the date of the last normal menstrual cycle. The resulting value is substituted for the missing clinical estimate if the calculation produces a reasonable value.

Live Birth - A live birth is any infant who breathes or shows any other evidence of life (such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles) after separation from the mother's uterus, regardless of the duration of gestation.

Live Birth Order - The number of liveborn children including the current birth.  In multiple deliveries, the live birth order increases sequentially with each child delivered.

Low Birthweight (LBW) - Birthweight less than 2,500 grams (5 lb 8 oz).

Multiple Birth - The result of more than one infant born in a single pregnancy (e.g., a twin, triplet, quadruplet, or quintuplet pregnancy) is reported in this document.  Data presented in this report only indicate the number of live births from the multiple birth, not the total number of sets of multiple births.  Because some multiple births may result in both live births and stillborn fetuses, the total number of multiple births may not be an even multiple of the specified multiple birth (e.g., an odd number of twins).

Postterm Birth - Delivery of a liveborn infant of more than 41 weeks gestation.

Preterm Birth - Delivery of a liveborn infant prior to 37 weeks gestation.  This report uses the clinical estimate of gestation that is reported on the birth certificate.  This may be different from the calculated estimate of gestation that is based on the date of the last normal menstrual cycle and the date of birth.

Primary Cesarean - A woman's first cesarean delivery.

Race - Race of the mother.  In this report, race is categorized as "white", "black", "other", and "total", where "other" means all other races besides white and black, including unknown, and "total" represents all races combined.  In Indiana, "Hispanic" is classified as an individual's ethnicity, not his or her race.  Please see definition of Ethnicity.  Please see Preface for OMB standards regarding race.

Resident Birth - The live birth of an infant whose mother's usual residence is in Indiana, regardless of where the birth occurred (inside Indiana or elsewhere).

Repeat Cesarean - A second or higher occurrence of a cesarean section to any individual woman.

Reported Pregnancies - Reported pregnancies include resident live births and fetal deaths, and induced terminated pregnancies that occurred in Indiana to Indiana residents.

Sex Ratio - The number of male infants born in a year for every 1,000 female infants.

Smoked during Pregnancy - This information is self-reported by the mother.

Stable Rate - A rate containing a minimum of 20 occurrences or events (e.g., births) per unit being examined (e.g., city, county, and state).

Suppressed Number - A number is suppressed if it is less than 5, including 0, in a subgroup. This is done in order to try to protect the confidentiality of individuals. These numbers are marked with a "**".

Suppressed Rate or Percent - A rate or a percent is suppressed when the numerator is less than 5, including 0, in a subgroup. This is done in order to try to protect the confidentiality of individuals. Suppressed rates/percents are also unstable rates/percents. These rates/percents are marked with a "**".

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) - The number of live births that 1,000 women would have if the current year's age-specific birth rate remained constant throughout their childbearing years.

Unmarried Parents - At the time of delivery, the mother was not married to her infant's father.  It includes women who were never married, and those who are divorced or widowed.  This was formerly termed "out-of-wedlock".

Unstable Rate or Percent - Some of the rates shown in this report are based on a small number of live births by age, race, or marital status.  The rates based on small numbers (less than 20) are considered unstable.  Rates based on less than 20, but more than 4, live births or pregnancies for women in particular age groups or marital status groups are marked with a "U".  Unstable rates do not lend themselves to being used to make decisions.

VBAC - Vaginal birth after a previous cesarean section.

Very Low Birthweight (VLBW) - Birthweight less than 1,500 grams (3 lb 5 oz).

Vital Statistics - Information obtained from official documents filed with the Indiana State Department of Health, including certificates of birth, death, marriage, and terminated pregnancy.


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