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Pre-pregnancy underweight and obesity are positively associated with small-for-gestational-age infants in a Chinese

Yuan Hua Chen1,2,3, Li Li4, Wei Chen5

  • 1School of Basic Medical Sciences, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230032, China. yuanhuach@126.com.

Scientific Reports
|October 31, 2019
PubMed

Insights

Maternal pre-pregnancy underweight and obesity are linked to adverse birth outcomes. Underweight mothers have higher risks of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants, while obesity increases risks for both SGA and large-for-gestational-age (LGA) infants.

Area of Science:

  • Obstetrics and Gynecology
  • Maternal-Fetal Medicine
  • Public Health Nutrition

Background:

  • Suboptimal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI) poses risks to pregnancy outcomes.
  • The specific associations between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI categories and infant size for gestational age are not fully elucidated, particularly in diverse populations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between pre-pregnancy BMI categories and the risk of delivering small-for-gestational-age (SGA) and large-for-gestational-age (LGA) infants.
  • To analyze these associations within a large cohort of Chinese mothers.

Main Methods:

  • A cohort study involving 12,029 pregnant women in China.
  • Participants were categorized by pre-pregnancy BMI: underweight, normal-weight, overweight, and obese.
  • Statistical analyses, including linear regression and adjusted risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI), were used to assess the association between BMI and infant size for gestational age.

Main Results:

  • Birth size was reduced in underweight and obese groups compared to the normal-weight group.
  • The underweight group had a significantly higher risk of SGA infants (adjusted RR = 1.92; 95% CI: 1.61, 2.30).
  • The obese group showed significantly increased risks for both SGA (adjusted RR = 2.17; 95% CI: 1.57, 3.00) and LGA infants (adjusted RR = 3.00; 95% CI: 2.21, 4.06) compared to the normal-weight group.

Conclusions:

  • Pre-pregnancy underweight is a significant risk factor for SGA infants.
  • Maternal obesity is associated with an elevated risk of both SGA and LGA infants, highlighting a dual risk profile.
  • These findings underscore the importance of optimizing maternal pre-pregnancy BMI for improved fetal growth and pregnancy outcomes.

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