The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) established the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) in 1987 in response to indications that the United States low birthweight and infant mortality rates were no longer declining as rapidly as in past years. In 1991, South Carolina (SC) PRAMS was implemented through a collaborative agreement between the CDC, the Office of Public Health Statistics and Information Services and the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health, SC Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC).

SC PRAMS is an ongoing, population-based survey that collects information on SC mothers who have recently given birth to a live-born infant. Each month approximately 200 women are sampled from the states live birth registry, and women who delivered a low birthweight infant are oversampled to ensure that adequate information is collected on high-risk groups. Selected mothers are mailed a PRAMS survey up to three times, and telephone interviewers attempt to reach the mothers who do not respond by mail. After statistical weights are applied to the data, inferences can be made about the health of mothers and babies in the state of SC.

The PRAMS survey provides state-specific data on maternal behaviors, attitudes, and experiences before, during, and shortly after pregnancy and delivery. Several topics on the survey include: pregnancy intention, smoking and alcohol use, psychosocial stress, family planning, barriers to health services, maternal nutrition, maternal obstetric history, infant health care, health insurance issues, income, and intendedness of pregnancy.

For additional information contact: Andrew Broadway (SCPRAMS@dhec.sc.gov)