Objective. We assessed the validity of selected items on the 2003 revised U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth to understand the accuracy of new and existing items.Methods. We calculated sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV) of select variables reported on the birth certificate using the medical record as the gold standard for a representative sample of live births in New York City (n5603) and Vermont (n5664) in 2009.Results. In both sites, sensitivity was excellent (.90%) for Medicaid coverage at delivery, any previous live births, and current method of delivery; sensitivity was moderate (70%-90%) for gestational diabetes; and sensitivity was poor (,70%) for premature rupture of the membranes and gestational hypertension. In both sites, PPV was excellent for Medicaid coverage, any previous live births, previous cesarean delivery, and current method of delivery, and poor for premature rupture of membranes. In both sites, almost all items had excellent (.90%) specificity and NPV.Conclusion. Further research is needed to determine how best to improve the quality of data on the birth certificate. Future revisions of the birth certificate may consider removing those items that have consistently proven difficult to report accurately.

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Co-use of substances was common among prenatal and postpartum marijuana users. Prenatal marijuana use was not independently associated with lower average birthweight or gestational age. Postpartum marijuana use was associated with depressive symptoms and shorter breastfeeding duration. Surveillance of marijuana use among pregnant and postpartum women is critical to better understanding the relationship of marijuana use with birth outcomes, and postpartum experiences such as depression and breastfeeding.

The extent of concurrent use of cigarettes and one or more other tobacco products (polytobacco use) is important to explore because users may be at an increased risk for adverse health effects and nicotine dependency. We determined national population estimates of current cigarette and current polytobacco use for at least 50,000 students from the 2002 and 2004 National Youth Tobacco Surveys. We identified which tobacco products were most often used in conjunction with cigarettes and used multivariate analyses to identify factors associated with polytobacco use. The overall prevalence was 16.0% for current cigarette smoking among all respondents and 15.0% for current cigarette smoking among respondents with complete information on concurrent cigarette and other tobacco product use: 8.1% used cigarettes only, and 6.9% were polytobacco users. Among current male cigarette smokers, 62.0% used other tobacco products; among current female cigarette smokers, 30.9% did. Among current cigarette smokers using one other tobacco product, cigars or smokeless tobacco were the most frequently used products. In multivariate analysis, polytobacco use was associated with being male; being in middle school; residing in the Midwest, South, or West; being able to obtain cigarettes from a retailer; being subject to peer influence; having favorable beliefs about tobacco; being willing to use tobacco promotional items; being exposed to tobacco advertisements; and having higher levels of lost autonomy (an indicator of nicotine dependency). Youth interventions need to broaden their focus to address the use of all tobacco products, paying particular attention to adolescent males and youth living outside of the Northeast.