Thursday 30 July 2020 2:11pm
EDOR researcher Associate Professor Kirsten Coppell and colleagues have published a review in the international journal Obesity Reviews, outlining ways in which the monitoring of weight gain in pregnancy can be improved.
Gestational weight gain (GWG) is an important predictor of adverse pregnancy outcomes, including gestational diabetes, preterm birth, delivery by caesarean and post‐partum weight retention. In addition, monitoring GWG is an essential component of lifestyle interventions that target recommended weight gain during pregnancy.
In the Obesity Reviews article, Associate Professor Kirsten Coppell, Dr Helen Paterson (Senior Lecturer, Women's and Children's Health) and first author Rosemary Stamm, have identified potential sources of bias in the measurement of GWG. Both the timing and the way in which weight is assessed influences measures of GWG.
The researchers determined that the first of these potential biases can be minimised by using measured weight at the first antenatal appointment in early pregnancy, rather than using self‐reported pre-pregnancy weight. A final weight measurement taken as close to the delivery date as possible, and adjusted for gestational age, would minimise the second potential source of bias.
An Obesity Reviews Editoral: The importance of gestational weight gain has endorsed their findings, stating that the current limitations in obtaining accurate measures of GWG is a barrier to identifying those at risk and optimizing lifestyle advice. An accurate assessment of weight during pregnancy, along with lifestyle interventions, has been shown to be effective in optimising GWG, with health benefits for both women and their babies.
Read the articles
- Minimization of bias in measures of gestational weight gain. Stamm RA, Coppell KJ, Paterson H. Obesity Reviews, 2020; doi.org/10.1111/obr.13056
- Editorial: The importance of gestational weight gain. Goldstein RF, Harrison CL, Teede HJ. Obesity Reviews, 2020; doi.org/10.1111/obr.13073
Find out more
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