Pregnancy in the obese Egyptian

ABSTRACT

The obstetric performance and pregnancy outcome in 46 obese pregnant mothers and 578 non-obese controls were studied. The mean weight gain among the obese patients was significantly higher than in the non- obese group. Prenatal problems, such as hypertensive disorders, gestational diabetes, insulin-dependent diabetes, urinary tract infections, abnormal presentations, post-term labor or thromboembolism, were more common in obese compared with the non- obese patients. Intrapartum and postpartum problems, such as prolonged labor, use of oxytocin, operative deliveries, postpartum hemorrhage and wound infection, were found more in obese mothers rather than in the non-obese controls. Fetal problems, such as shoulder dystocia, meconium aspiration, asphyxia or hypoglycemia, showed a higher incidence in the first group when compared with the second one. Perinatal mortality was high in the obese group. This can be attributed to the high incidence of congenital anomalies encountered in obese mothers. Macrosomia was seen more in the obese group compared with the controls. Fetal weight was significantly higher in obese mothers when compared with the controls