Mario Merialdi

TL;DR: 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.

TL;DR: Preterm birth, defined as childbirth occurring at less than 37 completed weeks or 259 days of gestation, is a major determinant of neonatal mortality and morbidity and has long-term adverse consequences for health as mentioned in this paper.

TL;DR: The analysis suggests a strong inverse association between CS rates and maternal, infant and neonatal mortality in countries with high mortality levels, and there is some suggestion of a direct positive association at lower levels of mortality.

TL;DR: To estimate the additional number of needed CS (cesarean section) that would be required in countries with lower than recommended national rates, as well as the number of excess CS in countries in which the procedure is arguably overused, and to understand the resource-use implications of the 'needed' and 'excess' CS.

TL;DR: The burden of small-for-gestational-age births is very high in countries of low and middle income and is concentrated in south Asia.