International Journal of Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology

Objective: The aim was to evaluate the pattern of weight gain in pregnancy and the feto-maternal outcome among women with different body mass indices attending antenatal clinic in the Federal capital territory (FCT).

Study design: This was a longitudinal, multicentre study.

Materials and Methods: Two hundred and twenty participants were recruited from 6 general hospitals in the FCT. Their body mass indices were calculated and they were categorized as underweight, normal weight, overweight and obese accordingly. They were followed up till 2 weeks postpartum. Maternal outcome sought included gestational hypertension, gestational diabetes and mode of delivery, postpartum haemorrhage, retained placenta and perineal injury. Neonatal outcomes included macrosomia, low birth weight, neonatal hypoglycaemia, shoulder dystocia, stillbirth and admission into special care baby unit (SCBU).

Result: The mean age of participants was 28.8 years ±4.7 with parities ranging from 0-8. The majority of them (39%) were overweight. While most of the women (118, 56.2%) had normal weight gain (NWG) in pregnancy, 15(7.1%) had low weight gain (LWG) and 77(36.6%) had high weight gain (HWG). Most (95%) of the HWG was among the overweight and obese women. There was a higher induction rate and postpartum haemorrhage among HWG women and postdate among the obese group. There was no difference in neonatal outcome among the groups.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated that HWG and LWG have more adverse pregnancy outcomes than NWG. Younger women (20-24years) with normal BMI at booking tend to gain suboptimal weight in pregnancy. HWG in pregnancy was commoner among overweight and obese women with increased induction of labour and postpartum haemorrhage among them. Post-date pregnancy was higher among the obese group. There was no difference in neonatal outcomes among the groups.