Population characteristics associated with adherence to prenatal group-based exercise programs.

Community-based supervised group exercise may be an effective option to increase activity levels throughout pregnancy. Previous studies that have explored predictors of low adherence to exercise during pregnancy have not examined group-based settings. We analysed an international cohort of 347 pregnant women who participated in group-based prenatal exercise interventions (from <20 weeks to 34-36 weeks pregnant).

Obesity can offset the cardiometabolic benefits of gestational exercise.

Pregnancy exercise can prevent excessive gestational weight gain (EGWG), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and hypertension (GH), but inter-individual variability has not been explored. We aimed to analyze the prevalence--and potential sociodemographic and medical predictors of--non-responsiveness to gestational exercise, and the association of non-responsiveness with adverse pregnancy outcomes. Among 688 women who completed a supervised light-to-moderate intensity exercise program (three ~1-h sessions/week including aerobic, resistance, and pelvic floor muscle training) until near-term, those who showed EGWG, GDM or GH were considered 'non-responders'.

Physical activity and prenatal depression: going beyond statistical significance by assessing the impact of reliable and clinical significant change.

Background: Previous literature supports exercise as a preventative agent for prenatal depression; however, treatment effects for women at risk for prenatal depression remain unexplored. The purpose of the study was to examine whether exercise can lower depressive symptoms among women who began pregnancy at risk for depression using both a statistical significance and reliable and clinically significant change criteria.

Methods: This study is a secondary analysis of two randomized controlled trials that followed the same exercise protocol.

Gestational Exercise and Maternal and Child Health: Effects until Delivery and at Post-Natal Follow-up.

We studied the influence of pregnancy exercise on maternal/offspring cardiometabolic health until delivery and at follow-up. We pooled data from two randomized controlled trials from our group that were performed following the same methodology (one unpublished). We also collected follow-up data de novo from the participants of both trials and their offspring.

Impact of maternal education on response to lifestyle interventions to reduce gestational weight gain: individual participant data meta-analysis.

Objectives: To identify if maternal educational attainment is a prognostic factor for gestational weight gain (GWG), and to determine the differential effects of lifestyle interventions (diet based, physical activity based or mixed approach) on GWG, stratified by educational attainment.

Design: Individual participant data meta-analysis using the previously established International Weight Management in Pregnancy (i-WIP) Collaborative Group database (https://iwipgroup.wixsite.

Exercise during pregnancy is associated with a shorter duration of labor. A randomized clinical trial.

Objective: to examine the influence of an exercise program throughout pregnancy on the duration of labor in healthy pregnant women.

Study Design: A randomized clinical trial was used (Identifier: NCT02109588). In all, 508 healthy pregnant women were randomly assigned between 9 and 11 weeks of gestation to either a Control Group (CG, N = 253) or an Exercise Group (EG, N = 255).

Effects of antenatal diet and physical activity on maternal and fetal outcomes: individual patient data meta-analysis and health economic evaluation.

Background: Diet- and physical activity-based interventions in pregnancy have the potential to alter maternal and child outcomes.

Objectives: To assess whether or not the effects of diet and lifestyle interventions vary in subgroups of women, based on maternal body mass index (BMI), age, parity, Caucasian ethnicity and underlying medical condition(s), by undertaking an individual patient data (IPD) meta-analysis. We also evaluated the association of gestational weight gain (GWG) with adverse pregnancy outcomes and assessed the cost-effectiveness of the interventions.

Aquatic Activities During Pregnancy Prevent Excessive Maternal Weight Gain and Preserve Birth Weight: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of a supervised and regular program of aquatic activities throughout gestation on maternal weight gain and birth weight.

Design: A randomized clinical trial.

Setting: Instituto de Obstetricia, Ginecología y Fertilidad Ghisoni (Buenos Aires, Argentina).

Influence of Land or Water Exercise in Pregnancy on Outcomes: A Cross-sectional Study.

Purpose: This study aimed to compare the cross-sectional results from three experimental studies conducted on land, in water, and in mixed form (land + water) during pregnancy on maternal and newborn outcomes.

Methods: A cross-sectional design was used to analyze the results of three randomized clinical trials in healthy pregnant women from Madrid (Spain) and Buenos Aires (Argentina). Five hundred and sixty-eight pregnant women were recruited.

Impact of gestational risk factors on maternal cardiovascular system.

Background: Scarce evidence is available on the potential cardiovascular abnormalities associated with some common gestational complications. We aimed to analyze the potential maternal cardiac alterations related to gestational complications, including body mass index (BMI) >25 kg/m(2), gaining excessive weight, or developing antenatal depression.

Methods: The design of this study was a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial.

Resistance Exercise in Pregnancy and Outcome.

As the health benefits of exercise are increasingly recognized, the traditional advice to rest during pregnancy has changed toward a more healthy and active pregnancy, therefore different forms of exercise have been integrated into the life of the pregnant woman. Although the benefits of using a combination of resistance and aerobic exercises are not yet determined, studies about resistance and strengthen training programs are few although no adverse outcomes were reported.

Dietary interventions in overweight and obese pregnant women: a systematic review of the content, delivery, and outcomes of randomized controlled trials.

Context: Interventions targeting maternal obesity are a healthcare and public health priority.

Objective: The objective of this review was to evaluate the adequacy and effectiveness of the methodological designs implemented in dietary intervention trials for obesity in pregnancy.

Data Sources: A systematic review of the literature, consistent with PRISMA guidelines, was performed as part of the International Weight Management in Pregnancy collaboration.

Biological Rationale for Regular Physical Exercise as an Effective Intervention for the Prevention and Treatment of Depressive Disorders.

Depression is a major medical and social problem. Here we review current body of knowledge on the benefits of exercise as an effective strategy for both the prevention and treatment of this condition. We also analyze the biological pathways involved in such potential benefits, which include changes in neurotrophic factors, oxidative stress and inflammation, telomere length, brain volume and microvessels, neurotransmitters or hormones.

Benefits of aerobic or resistance training during pregnancy on maternal health and perinatal outcomes: A systematic review.

Objective: To understand what evidence exists with regard to maternal and offspring benefits of aerobic and/or resistance training during pregnancy.

Methods: Systematic review of RCTs (published until May 2015) with healthy pregnant women and focusing on the benefits of exercise interventions on maternal health or perinatal outcomes. Studies were ranked as high/low quality, and a level of evidence was established according to the number of high-quality studies and consistency of the results.

Exercise during pregnancy protects against hypertension and macrosomia: randomized clinical trial.

Background: The prevalence of all pregnancies with some form of hypertension can be up to 10%, with the rates of diagnosis varying according to the country and population studied and the criteria used to establish the diagnosis. Prepregnancy obesity and excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) of all body mass index (BMI) categories have been associated with maternal hypertensive disorders and linked to macrosomia (>4000 g) and low birthweight (<2500 g). No large randomized controlled trial with high adherence to an exercise program has examined pregnancy-induced hypertension and these associated issues.

Maternal Cardiac Adaptations to a Physical Exercise Program during Pregnancy.

Introduction: Scarce evidence exists regarding the effects of regular pregnancy exercise on maternal cardiovascular health. We aimed to study, using a randomized controlled trial design, the effects of pregnancy exercise on echocardiographic indicators of hemodynamics, cardiac remodeling, left ventricular (LV) function, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors.

Methods: Two hundred forty-one healthy pregnant women were assigned to a control (standard care) or intervention (exercise) group (initial n = 121/120).

Exercise during pregnancy. A narrative review asking: what do we know?

Although there is no consensus as to whether exercise is beneficial during pregnancy, most studies report it poses no risk to either the mother or the fetus, and many suggest it to be beneficial to both. This review, which examines the evidence available, also reveals the many differences in study design followed, the type of exercise undertaken and the variables measured, which make it difficult to compare results. Advances in our understanding of the effects of exercise during pregnancy might best be made by undertaking randomised clinical trials with standardised protocols.

Regular Exercise Throughout Pregnancy Is Associated With a Shorter First Stage of Labor.

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of moderate physical exercise throughout pregnancy on the duration of labor stages.

Design: Study was a randomized controlled trial.

Setting: The study took place at Hospital Puerta de Hierro and Hospital Severo Ochoa in Madrid, Spain.

Supervised exercise-based intervention to prevent excessive gestational weight gain: a randomized controlled trial.

Objective: To study the effect on maternal weight gain of a supervised light- to moderate-intensity exercise-based intervention performed from the ninth week of pregnancy.

Participants And Methods: A total of 962 healthy pregnant women were randomly assigned to a standard care or exercise intervention group conducted between September 1, 2007, and January 31, 2011. The intervention included light- to moderate-intensity aerobic and resistance exercises performed 3 days a week (50-55 minutes per session).

A program of exercise throughout pregnancy. Is it safe to mother and newborn?

Purpose: The aim of the present study was to examine the influence of a program of moderate physical exercise throughout pregnancy on maternal and fetal parameters.

Design: The study design was a randomized controlled trial.

Setting: The study took place at the Hospital of Fuenlabrada in Madrid, Spain.

Aging phenotype and its relationship with IGF-I gene promoter polymorphisms in elderly people living in Catalonia.

Objectives: Genetic variations in the Insulin/IGF-I genes pathway have been related to longevity, dementia, metabolic diseases and cancer. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the 192 bp allele of IGF-I gene promoter and its relationship with metabolic syndrome (MS) components, mental and nutritional state, muscle strength and functional capacity in an aged Spanish population.

Design: Population-based study (Mataró Ageing Study), including 292 subjects (144 men and 148 women, mean age 77.

Prevalence, types, and pattern of intimate partner violence among pregnant women in Lima, Peru.

This study assesses the prevalence, types, and pattern of intimate partner violence (IPV) during lifetime and current pregnancy for 2,392 women in Lima, Peru. The reported lifetime prevalence of any IPV (physical, sexual, or emotional) is 45.1%.

Association of intimate partner physical and sexual violence with unintended pregnancy among pregnant women in Peru.

Objective: To examine the associations between lifetime physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence (IPV) with pregnancy intent among pregnant women in Lima, Peru.

Methods: A total of 2167 women who delivered at the Instituto Nacional Materno Perinatal, Lima, Peru were interviewed during the postpartum recovery period. Logistic regression was used to estimate multivariable adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals.