Physical Activity and Pregnancy Outcomes: An Observational Study of Greek Pregnant Women
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Ioannis Mitrogiannis1, Stylianos Makrydimas2, Nektaria Zagoriannakou3
1Harris Birthright Research Centre for Fetal Medicine, King's College London, London SE5 8BB UK.
Background:
Physical Activity during pregnancy has been a controversial field for years, despite its widely proven benefits in general population. The benefits of PA in both mother and the fetus should be highlighted to provide new insights.
Objective:
Examine the association of PA in Greek pregnant women with pregnancy outcomes.
Study Design:
This is a multicenter, prospective, observational study. The participants completed the Greek PPAQ and pregnancy outcomes were collected after birth. The level of PA and consistency with the international PA recommendations was evaluated with the use of METs. All pregnant women speaking greek fluently were eligible. The study was approved by the Ethical Committee of the University Hospital of Ioannina. Statistical analysis was conducted with the R program version 4.3.1. A regression analysis was also conducted for all pregnancy outcomes adjusted to potential cofounders.
Results:
A total of 915 pregnant women filled the PPAQ Greek version and were contacted postnatally for the outcomes. Neonates of active pregnant women had a lower median birthweight (3100 g vs 3170g, OR: 1.12, 95% CI:0.54- 2.11), lower incidence of admission to NICU (6.2% vs. 8.2%, OR: 0.76, 95% CI:0.33- 1.54) or neonatal complications (4.7% vs. 7.1%, OR: 0.64, 95% CI:0.24- 1.40). Moreover, pregnancy related hypertensive disorders and gestational diabetes mellitus were lower in the active group (0.01% vs. 3.8% OR: 0.20, 95% CI:0- 1.21 and 11.6% vs. 13.5%, OR: 0.85, 95% CI:0.46- 1.47 respectively). Vaginal delivery was more common in the active group (43% vs. 37.5% OR: 0.81, 95% CI:0.56- 1.19), as well as the incidence of PTB< 37 weeks (6.2% vs. 7.4%, OR: 0.84, 95% CI:0.36- 1.72). After adjusting for confounders, only birthweight differences were statistically significant (p = 0.036; 95% CI: -153, -5.5).
Conclusion:
This study demonstrates that PA during pregnancy is safe and beneficial for maternal-fetal health in several aspects of pregnancy outcomes. Clinicians should encourage incorporating PA in prenatal care in the absence of complications, while further studies using objective measures are needed to strengthen these findings.