The preterm birth rate for black infants in the United States was lower than ever in 2010, but it was still about 60% higher than the rate for white infants, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported.
Non-Hispanic black infants had a rate of preterm births (occurring before 37 weeks’ gestation) of 17.1% in 2010, a decrease of about 8% from the 18.5% reported in 2006, according to final birth certificate data from the National Vital Statistics System.
The total U.S. preterm birth rate in 2010 was 12.0%, with non-Hispanic whites (10.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islanders (10.7%) below the average and Hispanics (11.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Natives (13.6%) joining blacks above the national figure, the CDC said (MMWR Suppl. 2013;62:136-8).
