Maternal health and pregnancy outcomes among women of refugee background from African countries: a retrospective, observational study in Australia

Women of refugee background from Africa are reported to have a greater risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes compared to women born in resettlement countries. However, there is currently little insight into whether adverse pregnancy outcomes are more common among migrant women of refugee background, compared to women who have migrated for non-humanitarian reasons. To inform whether women of refugee background require additional services in pregnancy compared to non-refugee migrant women from similar world regions we aimed to describe and compare maternal health, pregnancy care attendance and pregnancy outcomes among migrant women from Africa with or without a refugee background. Methods Retrospective, observational study of singleton births at a single, metropolitan, maternity service in Australia 2002?2011, to women born in humanitarian source countries (HSC) and non-HSC from North Africa (n?=?1361), Middle and East Africa (n?=?706) and West Africa (n?=?106). Results Compared to non-HSC groups, age?