Abstract

RACHED-PAOLI, Ingrid; HENRIQUEZ-PEREZ, Gladys  and  AZUAJE-SANCHEZ, Arelis. Relación del peso al nacer con la edad gestacional y la antropometría materna. An Venez Nutr [online]. 2006, vol.19, n.1, pp.10-16. ISSN 0798-0752.

Abstract The objective was to determine the relationship between birth weight and gestational age and the following anthropometric variables: pre-pregnancy weight, pre-pregnancy body mass index, weight gain, and height. The sample consisted of 1,027 healthy mothers, of socioeconomic stratum IV, with newborns resulting from single pregnancies. The descriptive standards, Pearson correlation test, Levene test, ANOVA, and Scheffé were calculated. Multiple and logistic regression models were constructed. 65.3% of the pregnant women were well-nourished, according to pre-pregnancy BMI. 61.9%, 33.5% and 4.6% of newborns had appropriate, deficient, and low weight at birth, respectively. All the correlations between weight at birth and the mothers’ anthropometric variables were positive and significant. There was a significant difference of the values of pre-pregnancy weight, pre-pregnancy BMI, weight at the end of pregnancy and gestational age between low weight vs. appropriate weight at birth, and deficient weight vs. appropriate weight at birth. The multiple linear models constructed were not enough to accurately predict the weight at birth. The independent variables of the logistic regression model with a predictive value for deficient weight at birth were pre-pregnancy weight (OR = 1.04), weight increase (OR = 1.07) and gestational age (OR = 1.20). The anthropometric indicators of the maternal nutritional condition resulted effective and predictive of deficient weight at birth, but not of low weight. We recommend the development of multiple regression models that are able to analyze the predictive capability of other maternal nutritional status indicators, or of other maternal and fetal variables.

Keywords : weight at birth; gestational age; nutritional status; pregnancy; body weight; body mass index; stature; weight gain.