Changes in Body Adiposity between the First Antenatal Visit and the Short-Term Postpartum

Abstract

Introduction: Excessive accumulations of adipose tissue, whether general or regional, are findings of clinical value in nutritional and cardiometabolic follow-up during pregnancy and in the postpartum period.

Objective: To describe the changes in body adiposity at eighteenth months after delivery.

Methods: A descriptive and observational study of body adiposity was carried from January 2017 to August 2018 in 119 women in the short-term postpartum period, whose body adiposity had been studied during the first antenatal visit at “Chiqui Gómez Lubián” Polyclinic.

Results: In the postpartum period, with respect to the first antenatal visit, a decrease was observed in the number of women without general adiposity (from 28.6 % to 21.8 %) and of women with intermediate general adiposity (from 62.2 % to 53.8 %), with a marked increase in the number of women with high general adiposity (from 9.2 % to 24.4 %). The number of women with high central adiposity increased (from 35.3 % to 43.7 %), while the number of women without central adiposity decreased (from 64.7 % to 56.3 %).

Conclusions: To evaluate the changes in body adiposity by simple and easily accessible anthropometric techniques, during pregnancy and in the short-term postpartum period, may provide useful information for designing better the follow-up of cardiometabolic health of women.