Maternal Height in Pregnancy and Labour: Findings in Two Populations of Booked Pregnant Women Attending A Teaching Hospital in South West Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction: Maternal height may be a reflection of a woman’s general health and nutritional status from childhood and it may serve as one of the major determinants of a successful conduct of labour and delivery. So knowledge of the height of a pregnant woman can give an insight to the capacity of the pelvis for a successful vaginal delivery or otherwise. This study aims to investigate the significance of height of pregnant women in pregnancy and labour. Materials and Method: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study of 1061 booked pregnant women. They were grouped into study and control groups. Results: The control were significantly heavier at booking, even though the control booked earlier than the study group. The Caesarean section rate was significantly higher in the study than the control. The study group had significant higher rate of preterm deliveries than the control. Babies of the control had significant higher Apgar score in the first minute of life than the study group. Perinatal death was significantly higher in the study group when the two groups were controlled for age and parity. Conclusion: Short maternal height is an independent risk factor for adverse pregnancy and delivery outcomes and so they should be monitored closely during pregnancy and labour.