Obese weight or insufficient may cause risks during pregnancy

Main category: pregnancy and obstetrics
Also included in: Obesity / weight loss / Fitness;  High blood pressure
Article Date: April 22, 2012 - 0: 00 PDT

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Obese women are at risk of problems during pregnancy, labour and complications to the baby's health. A new study of over 3000 pregnant women confirms and also revealed that in underweight also has specific complications.

Researchers at the University Hospital Virgen de las Nieves in Granada, have identified risk during pregnancy specifically related to obesity and compared to underweight women to confirm that extreme thinness also carries a risk.

"Pregnancy, obesity is linked to hypertension, gestational diabetes, preterm labour, macrosomy of the fetus and unexplained death during labour" Sebastián Manzanares, the first author of the study says to SINC. "Nevertheless, it is still little information concerning the link between low birth weight and perinatal complications.

The study, published in the Journal of maternal-fetal and neonatal medicine, includes a sample of 3 016, 168 (5.5%) with extreme thinness, 2,597 (86.1%) pregnant women with a normal weight and 251 (8.3%) being severely obese or morbidly.

The results show that obese mothers have a higher risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes mellitus and colonization with Group B Streptococcus. For these women, it is also more common to induce labour, or undergo a caesarean or emergency. It is also more common for macrosomy or acidosis occurs at birth, or for the baby to die before she was born.

In addition, insufficient weight women are more prone to oligohydramnios (reduced in the amount of amniotic fluid) and their underweight infants. The incidence of women in labour prematurely or late was not significantly different from the mass of the mother.

"Mothers severely or morbidly obese have a higher risk of perinatal mortality and negative results and must therefore be informed on weight loss and how to recognize the warning signs of possible complications" Manzanares highlights. "Nevertheless, this group, and underweight women, must be considered"high risk"."

Chubbier babies

The new study shows that infants of mothers severely or morbidly obese are larger. In addition, the risk of fetal macrosomy is 2.3 times more important in this group compared to women with normal weight.

For authors "these results justify the need for evaluation before pregnancy and it could be a convincing argument for the change of weight". "The study shows an increased risk for severe or morbid obesity and underweight women also," concludes Manzanares.

Article adapted by Medical News Today news release original. Click on "References" tab over the source.
Visit our pregnancy / obstetrics section for the latest news on this subject. Sebastián Manzanares Galán, Ángel Santalla Hernández, Irene vico Zúñiga, Mr. Setefilla López Criado and Alicia Pineda Lloréns José Luis Vallejo de Gallo. Index abnormal maternal body mass and obstetrical and neonatal outcomes. The Journal of maternal-fetal and neonatal medicine, 1-5, marzo de 2012.
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