ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To explore ethnic differences in weight retention 14 weeks postpartum. DESIGN: Population-based cohort study. SETTING: The STORK Groruddalen Study. POPULATION: A multi-ethnic cohort of healthy pregnant women attending primary antenatal care at three public Child Health Clinics, in Oslo, Norway (n = 642). METHODS: An explanatory linear regression was performed to model the relationship between ethnicity and postpartum weight retention. Forward selection of 12 explanatory factors was used to adjust for potential confounding factors, based on univariate analysis and adjusted R(2) . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Postpartum weight retention. RESULTS: Unadjusted mean postpartum weight retention was 2.3 (4.9) kg for women from Western Europe and varied from 3.7 (3.5) to 6.3 (4.7) kg among the five ethnic minority groups. The proportion of women in the highest quintile (postpartum weight retention >8.5-24.4 kg) significantly differed by ethnicity (P < 0.01 for the proportion of women from South Asia, the Middle East and Africa compared with Western Europeans). Women from all ethnic minority groups had a higher relative increase in weight from pre-pregnancy to postpartum (P < 0.01) compared with Western Europeans. After adjustments for significant exposures, women from the Middle East retained 2.0 kg (95% CI: 1.0-3.0), South Asia 2.8 kg (91.9-3.6), and Africa 4.4 kg (3.1-5.8) more than Western Europeans (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Significantly more women with an ethnic origin from South Asia, the Middle East and Africa had high postpartum weight retention compared with Western European women.
Subject(s)
Asian People , Black People , Ethnicity , Postpartum Period/physiology , Weight Gain/ethnology , White People , Adult , Body Mass Index , Cohort Studies , Diet , Female , Humans , Life Style , Multivariate Analysis , Norway/epidemiology , Obesity/epidemiology , Obesity/ethnology , Overweight/epidemiology , Overweight/ethnology , Population Surveillance , Pregnancy , Pregnancy Complications/epidemiology , Pregnancy Complications/ethnology , Risk Factors , Socioeconomic FactorsABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Anaphylaxis is a potentially fatal condition requiring immediate resuscitation. Data regarding the epidemiology of anaphylaxis are limited and inconsistent. A reason for the variability was unavailability of a universally acceptable case definition till 2005. We reviewed cases using this new definition AIM: To review the incidence, clinical presentation, cause and outcome of anaphylaxis at a tertiary-care centre in a low-income country. DESIGN: Retrospective, case series METHODS: Chart review of all patients discharged from Aga Khan University Hospital between January 1988 and December 2012 (24 years) with anaphylaxis definition as per second National Institute of Allergy and Infection disease/Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network Symposium RESULTS: Total of 129 cases were found with mean age of 41.6 years (SD 18.8). Majority of patients had cutaneous features (76.7%), followed by respiratory (68.9%), cardiac (64.3%) and gastrointestinal (20.9%) symptoms, respectively. About 22.4% of patients had positive history for allergens out of which 31% (n = 9) were exposed to the same allergens. The common causes identified for anaphylaxis were drugs (60.5%), food (16.3%) and intravenous contrast (10.9%), respectively. Only 22.5% of cases received epinephrine as a part of their initial management. In four patients (3.1%) the cause of death was attributed to anaphylaxis. CONCLUSION: Anaphylaxis is a rare but life-threatening condition. Though cutaneous features are most common, their absence does not exclude the diagnosis. Drugs were the most common cause and epinephrine was not commonly used as first-line agent for its management.
