Health profile of Brazilian mothers in Massachusetts in the twenty-first century

Abstract

This paper describes the health profile of Brazilian mothers in Massachusetts according to data collected through Massachusetts Standard Certificate of Live Births (1989 revision) filed with the Massachusetts Registry of Vital Records and Statistics during 1999 and 2009. To our knowledge this is the first time that such information is reviewed with a focus on Brazilian immigrants. The findings of this article suggests that Brazilian mothers who gave birth in Massachusetts between 1999 and 2009 fared better than all mothers in Massachusetts in most obstetric health indicators considered.

Keywords

• Brazilian mothers
• Maternal health
• Prenatal care of Brazilian mothers
• Health of Brazilian immigrants in the U.S.
• Immigrant health