Sociodemographic, obstetric and psychological determinants of obesity among women in early to mid-pregnancy in South India

Background: Worldwide, the occurrence of obesity has markedly increased over the past decades with serious public health consequences. Obese pregnant women are more likely to develop hypertension, pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes, resulting in obstetric complications which in turn may contribute to an increase in adverse child outcomes and maternal mortality. The present study was done to determine the prevalence of obesity and its association with socio-demographic variables, obstetric history and mental health. Methods: This study was nested within an ongoing cohort study, CASCADE, in a public hospital in Bangalore. The study participants comprised of 280 pregnant women who were 18 years of age and above, with a gestational age of less than 24 weeks, enrolled between a period of August 1st, 2017 until April 30th, 2018. Weight and height were measured using calibrated devices to calculate the body mass index. Results: The prevalence of obesity was observed to be 33.9% among the pregnant mothers. Obesity was found to be significantly associated with age, history of abortion, gravidity on multivariate logistic regression. No association was found with depression and anxiety. Conclusions: Obesity is an important health concern among urban pregnant women in the region of South India. The prevalence is much higher than that reported in other studies. Increasing age, multigravidity and past history of abortion were significantly associated with maternal obesity.</ns4:p

The prevalence and determinants of pregnancy-related anxiety amongst pregnant women at less than 24 weeks of pregnancy in Bangalore, Southern India.

Background: A pregnant woman undergoes physiological as well as psychological changes during this phase of life during which anxiety is a commonly faced mental condition. There is sufficient evidence on the association of pregnancy specific anxiety with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Studies on anxiety during pregnancy from low and middle income countries are limited. Methods: This study included 380 pregnant women, having a confirmed pregnancy of less than 24 weeks without any obstetric complication, who were availing of antenatal care at a public sector hospital in Bangalore city. Pregnancy-related thoughts (PRT) scale was used to screen for anxiety. Details pertaining to sociodemographic data, obstetric history, psychosocial factors including social support, marital discord, domestic violence, consanguinity, history of catastrophic events, history of mental illness, current presence of depression and anxiety was obtained by means of electronic data capture using an Android-based App. Results: Out of 380 pregnant women, 195 (55.7%) were found to have pregnancy-related anxiety. Lower socioeconomic status, low social support and depression emerged as significant determinants of anxiety. Conclusion: The prevalence of anxiety was fairly high in the study population and isp therefore an important public health concern. Pregnancy-related anxiety must be identified early during routine antenatal care to prevent any untoward pregnancy outcomes

Prenatal Depression and Its Associated Risk Factors Among Pregnant Women in Bangalore: A Hospital Based Prevalence Study

BACKGROUND The most common psychological problem that affects a woman during her perinatal period worldwide is depression. The risk of prenatal depression increases significantly as pregnancy progresses and clinically significant depressive symptoms are common in mid and late trimesters. Studies from various countries around the world have shown a prevalence rate ranging from as low as 4% to as high as 81%. The prevalence of depression in India is shown to vary from 9.18% in one study to 36.75 % reported in another. There is paucity of research on depression during the prenatal period, especially in India. Given this background, the present study aimed to assess the prevalence of prenatal depression and its associated risk factors among pregnant women in Bangalore, Southern India. METHODS: The study was nested within an on-going cohort study. The study participants comprised of pregnant women attending the antenatal clinic at Jaya Nagar General Hospital (Sanjay Gandhi Hospital) in Bangalore. The data was collected using standardised questionnaires. Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support Scale (MSPSS), Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale, The Modified Conflict Tactics scale, Modified Kuppuswamy socio economic scale, Pregnancy related anxiety Scales were used. RESULTS: Of the 280 pregnant mothers, the proportion of them who screened positive for prenatal depression was 35.7%. Presence of domestic violence was found to impose a five times higher and highly significant risk of developing prenatal depression among the respondents. Pregnancy related anxiety was also found to be a positive predictor of prenatal depression. Presence of catastrophic events in the past one year was found to impose a two times higher and significant risk of developing prenatal depression among the respondents. CONCLUSION: The present study showed a higher prevalence of prenatal depression among the study participants which is suggestive of the public health importance in the study region. Health care plans therefore can include screening and diagnosis of prenatal depression in the antenatal care along with other health care facilities provided

Contraceptive practice among married women in urban areas catered by a medical college in Belagavi, Karnataka

Introduction: Population explosion is one of the most hazards to the development of India. The most effective way to control this is by reducing birth rate using contraception. Objective: To know the prevalence of contraceptive use among married women. Methodology: Community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among married women aged 15-44 years residing in three urban areas of Belagavi using predesigned and pretested questionnaire after obtaining informed consent. Results: The prevalence of contraceptive use in the present study was 353 (58.8%), among them 96 (16.0%) were condom user, 113 (18.9%) were using intrauterine device, 26 (4.3%) were practicing rhythm method, 20 (3.3%) of them were using oral contraceptive pill, and 98 (16.3%) were practicing sterilization method. Conclusion: Prevalence rate of contraceptive use was relatively less. Improving female literacy and proper counseling of couples for family planning would help improve the prevalence rate

Factors affecting birth weight of a newborn--a community based study in rural Karnataka, India.

BACKGROUND: Low birth weight (LBW) is a major public health problem in many developing countries, especially so in India. Although we do not know all the causes of LBW, maternal and environmental factors appear to be significant risk factors in its occurrence. OBJECTIVES: To know the factors affecting the birth weight of a newborn and to estimate the prevalence of LBW. METHODS: The present study was carried out amongst 1138 pregnant women and their newborns residing in area covered by Kinaye Primary Health Centre in rural Karnataka, India. The study was conducted from 1(st) June 2008 to 31(st) December 2009. RESULTS: The mean birth weight of newborns was 2.6 kg with a range of 1.2 to 3.8 kg. The prevalence of LBW was 22.9%. Among the studied risk factors, 25 of them were significantly associated with the birth weight of a newborn on univariate logistic regression analysis. Maternal education [Odds Ratio (OR) 3.2], exposure to passive smoking [OR 2.3], age at first pregnancy ≥25 years [OR 3.6], birth interval <2 years [OR 2.4], previous history of LBW baby [OR 3.3], weight gain ≤4 kg during pregnancy [OR 7.0], maternal weight at last week of gestation ≤45 kg [OR 2.3], pregnancy induced hypertension [OR 3.3], high risk pregnancy [OR 3.6] and late antenatal registration [OR 3.6] emerged as significant risk factors on multivariate analysis. CONCLUSION: The problem of LBW is multidimensional, and hence, we need an integrated approach incorporating medical, social, economical and educational measures to address this issue

The Association between Maternal Salivary Cortisol and Depression during Early to Mid- Pregnancy - Findings from the CASCADE Study

Evidence suggests that antenatal depression may increase the risk of complications both in mother as well as the infant. Various biological metrics are used to assess the cortisol levels during pregnancy. In this study we examined the association between maternal depression and salivary cortisol values with the hypothesis that mothers with higher scores of depression will have a higher salivary cortisol level

Univariate and Multivariate Logistic Regression Analysis.

a<p>Studied from first to seventh class.</p>b<p>Studied from eighth to tenth class.</p>c<p>Studied after tenth class or pre-university education.</p>d<p>Awarded University degree in any speciality (Ref)^e Reference category.</p>f<p>Gap between this and the previous pregnancy (excluding primiparas mothers).</p>g<p>One which is complicated by factor or factors that adversely affects the pregnancy outcome.</p>h<p>Conception to completion of 12 weeks of gestation.</p>i<p>Over 12 weeks of gestation to completion of 28 weeks of gestation.</p>j<p>Over 28 weeks of gestation. OR, Odds Ratio; CI, Confidence Interval. *p<0.001, **p<0.01, ***p<0.05.</p

Prevalence and risk factors of anemia among pregnant women attending a public-sector hospital in Bangalore, South India

Background: Anemia affects almost two-thirds of pregnant women in developing countries and contributes to maternal mortality and low birthweight. According to the National Family Health Survey-4 reports, maternal anemia continues to be a public health problem. Objective: To study the prevalence of anemia and its risk factors among pregnant women attending a public-sector hospital. Materials and Methods: This study was nested within an ongoing cohort study “ÇASCADE” which is exploring the effect of prenatal exposure to maternal cortisol and psychological distress on infant development in Bangalore. The respondents were enrolled from the antenatal clinic at Jayanagar General Hospital, which is a sub-district hospital. A total of 280 women who fulfilled the eligibility criteria were enrolled. Results: The prevalence of anemia was observed to be 33.9%; proportion of mild and moderate anemia was almost similar (48.4 and 49.5%). The mean hemoglobin level of all the participants was 11.33 ± 1.460 g/dl. The mean hemoglobin level concentration was high during early gestation with a slight decrease by 21–24 weeks. Prenatal depression but not anxiety appeared to be a strong predictor of anemia on bivariate as well as multivariate analysis. No association was observed with socio-demographic and obstetric variables. Conclusion: The burden of maternal anemia was considerably high in the study population. Although iron-folic acid supplementation is available under the national health program to address this issue, it is important to consider and address other risk factors when designing and implementing target interventions for anemia control in selected populations