Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2022;44(4):360-368
To assess the levels of physical activity and exercise practice, and examine the associated maternal characteristics; as well as the anxiety levels of high-risk pregnant women.
A cross-sectional study conducted with pregnant women at a High-risk Prenatal Clinic (HRPC) in a tertiary maternity. Pregnant women of 18 to 40-years-old, with a single fetus, and with gestational age up to 38 weeks were included. The level of physical activity and exercise practice of the study’s participants were investigated using the Pregnancy Physical Activity Questionnaire (PPAQ). Maternal sociodemographic, anthropometric, and medical data were investigated using a specific form. For anxiety levels, the short version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) was applied. We used the Student t-test, chi-square test, odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) and multiple logistic regression. The significance level was 5%.
Among the 109 pregnant women included, 82 (75.2%) were classified as sedentary/little active. The higher energy expenditure were for domestic activities (133.81±81.84 METs), followed by work-related activities (40.77±84.71 METs). Only 19.3% women exercised during pregnancy (4.76±12.47 METs), with slow walking being the most reported exercise. A higher level of education was the most important factor associated with women being moderately or vigorously active (OR=29.8; 95% CI 4.9-117.8). Nulliparity (OR=3.1; 95% CI 1.0-9.1), low levels of anxiety (OR=3.6; 95% CI 1.2-10.7), and unemployment (OR=4.8; 95% CI 1.1-19.6) were associated with the practice of exercise during pregnancy.
Most women with high-risk pregnancies exhibited a sedentary pattern, with low prevalence of physical exercise practice. Recognizing factors that hinder the adoption of a more physically active lifestyle is essential for an individualized guidance regarding exercise during pregnancy.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2003;25(6):431-436
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032003000600008
PURPOSE: to analyze maternal death cases that occurred at the "Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre", a reference university hospital for high-risk pregnancies in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. METHODS: we carried out a retrospective study of medical records of 10- to 49-year-old women who died at the hospital between 1980 and 1999. Deaths related to pregnancy and puerperium were analyzed independently of the kind and duration of pregnancy. The causes were classified into direct obstetric, indirect obstetric and nonobstetric, according to their association with pregnancy, delivery and puerperium disorders. RESULTS: a total of 81 patients with a mean age of 28.5 years were studied. The maternal mortality rate was 109 per 100,000 live births. Direct obstetric causes made up 61.7% of deaths. Indirect causes made up 23.5% of deaths. Nonobstetric causes made up 15.0% of the total. Among direct obstetric causes, arterial hypertension (18.5%), post-cesarean infection (16%), and septic abortion (12.3%) were the most prevalent. The main maternal mortality events among indirect obstetric causes were cardiopathy (8.6%), acute fatty liver disease (3.5%), and systemic lupus erythematosus (2.5%). Among the nonobstetric causes, malignant neoplasia (7.4%) and AIDS (3.7%) were the most important. CONCLUSIONS: the prevailing causes of maternal death have not changed in the last two decades. The main cause is still hypertension. There is an expressive number of deaths related to cesarean section and infections. The high prevalence of direct obstetric causes shows the low maternal mortality prevention capacity of our health care system.
Summary
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2002;24(6):401-406
DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032002000600007
Purpose: to evaluate, in the high-risk pregnancies with oligohydramnios, the assessment tools for fetal well-being and perinatal results. Methods: five hundred seventy-two high-risk pregnancies were retrospectively analyzed. All of them presented with oligohydramnios established by AFI <=5.0 cm. Severe oligohydramnios was detected in 220 cases (AFI<=3,0 cm). The fetal well-being tests included: antepartum cardiotocography, biophysical profile score (BPS) and dopplervelocimetry of umbilical and middle cerebral arteries. Multiple gestation, fetal anomalies and premature rupture of membrane cases were excluded. Results: severe oligohydramnios was significantlly associated with abnormal and suspected cardiotocography results (23.2%), abnormal biophysical profile score (10.5%), abnormal results of middle cerebral artery dopplervelocimetry (54.5%), small for gestational age infants (32.7%) and meconial amniotic fluid (27.9%) when compared to pregnancies with AFI between 3.1 and 5.0 cm. This group presented: abnormal or suspected cardiotocography results (13.9%), abnormal biophysical profile score (4.3%), abnormal results of middle cerebral artery dopplervelocimetry (33.9%), small for gestational age infants (21.0%) and meconial amniotic fluid (16.8%). Conclusion: the oligohydramnios severity in high-risk pregnancies allows to discriminate the cases that are related to adverse perinatal outcome.