Background:
Adverse pregnancy outcomes (APO) are risk factors for future cardiovascular disease. Though factors such as obesity increase the risk of APO, whether patterns of prenatal sedentary behavior (SED) or physical activity are associated with APO is unclear.
Methods:
This cohort study measured objective SED, steps, and moderate-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) during each trimester of pregnancy. Women were instructed to wear two monitors for 7 d: a thigh-mounted activPAL3 micro to measure SED and steps, and an Actigraph GT3X on an elastic waist belt to measure MVPA. Women also completed a detailed wear log. Data were considered valid with ≥4 d of ≥10 hr of wear. Physician-diagnosed APO (gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, preterm birth, or intrauterine growth restriction) were abstracted from medical records by trained research personnel. Growth mixture modelling was used to construct separate SED, steps, and MVPA trajectories across pregnancy. Associations between trajectory groups and APO were evaluated using logistic regression with adjustment for prepregnancy BMI, race, education, and age.
Results:
Women (n=100) had mean (SD) age 31.2 (4.8) yr, pregnancy BMI 26.2 (6.8) kg/m
2
, and were 25% non-white. Trajectory analyses revealed three groups within each SED, steps, and MVPA (see Table). Nineteen women (19%) had at least one APO: gestational hypertension and/or preeclampsia (n=13), gestational diabetes (n=3), preterm birth (n=6), or intrauterine growth restriction (n=4). High vs. low SED trajectory was associated with more than 6-fold higher odds of APO. Medium and high vs. low steps trajectory was associated with lower odds of APO, but only medium vs. low trajectories were statistically different. MVPA trajectory was not associated with APO risk (see Table).
Conclusion:
Reducing SED and increasing daily steps, though not increasing MVPA, could be novel intervention targets for reducing APO and future cardiovascular risk in pregnant women.
Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Disease Associated microRNAs Are Dysregulated in Placental Tissues Affected with Gestational Hypertension, Preeclampsia and Intrauterine Growth Restriction
