Weight Gain in Pregnancy and its Correlation with Birth Weight of Infants

Introduction: Birth weight is one of the main determinations for somatic and mental growth in infants and it is an important symptom of intrauterine growth. This study has been designed to detect the weight gain in pregnancy and its correlation with birth weight of infants. Methods: Six hundred pregnant women were selected from those referred to delivery room in Hajar hospital. Data was collected by a questionnaire using conversation with mothers, prenatal, natal and infant,s records. We used similar scale balance to measure the mothers and infants weight. Age of mother less than 18 and more than 35, gestational age less than 37 weeks, twin,s pregnancy, history of abortion and intrauterine fetal death, smoking drinking of alcohol and medical history of diseases in mother, were excluded. Results: The mean of weight gain in pregnancy was 11.50 ± 3.6 kg. It was increased with the increase of parity (P=0.015) and level of education in mother (P=0.018). Also it was greater in cesarean section versus the vaginal delivery (P=0.006). The mean of birth weight was 3179.1±433.1 gr. It was greater in multifarious than the nulliparous women (P=0.003), in male infants than the female infants (P=0.013) and in educated than the uneducated women. The mean of birth weight was increased by increased of mother,s weight in the beginning and along of pregnancy. Conclusion: Results of this study showed the importance of mother,s weight at the first and along of pregnancy. Following to recognize of mothers who are at risk for delivery of low birth weight we are able to care them carefully and educate them in different fields