Risk Factors and Costs of Hospital Admissions in First Year of Life: A Population-Based Study

Objective To identify the maternal and infant risk factors associated with hospital admission in the first year and estimate the associated costs of infant hospitalization. Study design Data from the Perinatal Data Collection for 599 753 liveborn infants born in New South Wales, Australia, 2001-2007 were linked to hospital admission data. Logistic regression models were used to investigate the association between maternal and infant characteristics and admission to hospital once, and more than once in the first year; and average costs for total hospital admissions were calculated. Results Almost 15% of infants were admitted to hospital once and 4.6% had multiple admissions. Gestational age