[Standard international recommendations for gestational weight gain: suitability for our population].

Background

gestational weight gain (GWG) is one of the most commonly used indicators in prenatal care, and probably the most influential factor in perinatal outcomes.

Objective

to determine the extent to which the GWG of pregnant women from the Ribera Health Department (Valencia) meets GWG international standards as recommended by the U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM).

Methods

a retrospective observational study of a sample of 4,361 women who gave birth at Hospital Universitario de la Ribera between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2015. Pregnant women were classified according to GWG international recommendations: adequate weight gain, above and below.

Results

a higher GWG increases the risk of cesarean delivery or instrumental delivery (OR = 1.454, p < 0.001; OR = 1.442, p < 0.001, respectively), and of having a macrosomic or larger newborn for gestational age (OR = 3.851, p = 0.008; OR = 1.749, p < 0.001, respectively) as compared to an appropriate GWG. GWG is related to birth weight (p < 0.001).

Conclusions

the GPG recommendations issued by the IOM are generally well adapted to pregnant women in our environment. It has been found that a GPG other than these recommendations increases the probability of obtaining poor perinatal outcomes. Nevertheless, a more personalized approach is needed, adapting international recommendations to prenatal control for each of the pre-pregnancy BMI categories.