Paper Authors and Title
Rossella De Luca (Technological University Dublin), Aidan O’Donoghue, Eileen O’Brien, “Factors affecting offspring birth weight in the context of Hyperemesis Gravidarum: an Irish cohort study”
Abstract
Background
Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG) is a severe form of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy and can have consequences for both the mother and the offspring. Women may experience malnutrition, weight loss, dehydration, and psychosocial consequences. However, evidence of adverse effects of HG on newborn babies is contrasting. This study aimed to describe birth outcomes among a cohort of HG pregnancies, in a tertiary maternity hospital in Ireland. Furthermore, this study explored the relationship between HG severity, gestational weight gain (GWG) and offspring birth weight (BW).
Methods
This observational cohort study used data collected from the National Maternity Hospital (NMH), Dublin. HG severity was quantified using the Pregnancy Unique Quantification of Emesis (PUQE) scores and cumulative hospital contacts (CHC) for HG. Where available, GWG was calculated and categorised according to the Institute of Medicine guidelines.
Results/Conclusion
This dataset contained 129 women diagnosed with HG. Most had either moderate or severe HG (both 41%). BW did not differ based on CHC (p=0.567), or PUQE scores at first presentation (p=0.611) or discharge (p=0.064). However, the mean BW of babies born from women with mild HG at discharge was significantly lower than those with moderate HG (p=0.021). GWG did not affect offspring BW (p=0.657), but offspring of women with inadequate GWG were the smallest. GWG was not associated with CHC (p=0.373), nor with the PUQE scores at first presentation (p=0.548) or discharge (p=0.942). Larger studies are needed to evaluate the consequences of HG severity on offspring birth outcomes.