How daddy affects? Influences of paternal age and education on prenatal visits and pregnancy outcomes

Objective: The important role of paternal characteristics in pregnancy outcomes has recently been proposed; however, paternal effects have seldom been taken into consideration in prenatal visits. Very few is addressed on the influences of paternal education on perinatal health. This study thus aimed to examine the effects of paternal age and education on prenatal visits and pregnancy outcomes, using a nationwide population-based dataset. Study design: This study used data from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. A total of 213,206 singleton births in Taiwan in 2005 were retrieved and followed till fetal birth. Multivariate logistic regression models were performed, with the simultaneous consideration on characteristics of the father, the mother, the infant and family monthly income. Results: We found that fathers with education level lower than high school were associated with inadequate prenatal visits (less than 6 times) (OR=1.2, 95%CI=(1.1-1.3)) and late for the first prenatal visit (with the first visit >20th gestational week) (OR=1.5, 95%CI=(1.4-1.6)), irrespective of family income and maternal or pregnancy-specific factors. Compared with those with high school education, fathers with lower education independently experienced increased risks of having a newborn with very low birthweight (OR=1.4, 95%CI=(1.1-1.7)), low birthweight (OR=1.2, 95%CI=(1.1-1.3)), preterm birth (OR=1.2, 95%CI=(1.1-1.3)), and small for gestational age (OR=1.2, 95%CI=(1.1-1.4)). Furthermore, paternal age younger than 25 was associated with inadequate prenatal visits and adverse pregnancy outcomes. Conclusion: More attention should be paid to paternal effects in affecting inadequate prenatal care and adverse pregnancy outcomes, for the health of mothers and babies.