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Mothers’ poor health makes pregnancy riskier, not age

IT IS NOT advanced age that is causing a rise in pregnancy complications, rather the poor health of the mother, suggests research.

The study led by a team from Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago in the US showed that rising rates of adverse pregnancy outcomes such as hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preterm birth and low birth weight over the past 10 years are largely attributable to the health status of a person before they get pregnant, rather than age.

The study found that the average age of pregnant individuals rose from 27.9 years in 2011 to 29.1 years in 2019, yet age accounted for only a small portion of the marked increase in adverse pregnancy outcomes seen during the period.

Most striking, the rate of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (high blood pressure with or without pre-eclampsia or eclampsia) rose by more than 50% during the decade, yet the shift in age distribution of those giving birth accounted for less than 2% of that change.

“Although mothers are getting older at the time they deliver, that is not what is causing these adverse birth outcomes,” said lead author Zachary Hughes, an internal medicine physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

“What’s really driving it is pre-pregnancy health issues like diabetes and hypertension.”

Using data from the National Center for Health Statistics Natality Files, researchers compared rates of pre-eclampsia and eclampsia, preterm birth and low birth weight among 3.9 million births in 2011 and 3.7 million births in 2019.

The results showed moderate increases in preterm birth and low birth weight (which rose by about 2% and 4%, respectively) and larger increases in hypertensive disorders (a 52% increase).

Using statistical methods to analyse the role of age in these changes, researchers found the shift in age distribution accounted for only a small portion of the increase across all outcomes assessed.

Adverse pregnancy outcomes have important health consequences, including an increased risk of heart disease both at the time of pregnancy and later in life – not only for the person giving birth but also for the baby.

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en-za

2023-05-31T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-05-31T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://thepostza.pressreader.com/article/282046216478311

African News Agency