OBJECTIVES: Weight gain during pregnancy is a physiological process with the chance of becoming pathological. Too little or too much gain of weight could increase the occurrence of risks regarding the outcome of the pregnancy, (e.g., gestational diabetes, pregnancy-induced hypertonia, preeclampsia).

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective, cross-sectional, quantitative, descriptive study with document analysis in August 2021 at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Clinical Centre, University of Pécs, Hungary. Non-probability targeted sampling was used to include women who gave birth between January 1 and June 30, 2020. Women with singular pregnancies, live births and with completed 37th gestational week were included. Those who smoked or suffered from hypo/hyperthyreosis or heart disease were excluded. Analysis was made with Microsoft Excel 2019, descriptive statistics and χ² test were calculated (p<0.05).

RESULTS: Weight gain of <10 kg significantly correlated with the prevalence of complications during pregnancy (p<0.05). Regarding the prevalence of episiotomy, we found significant difference between birth weight for those with below average birth weight (p<0.05). For weight gain of <10 kg, a higher proportion of newborns were born with a lower birth weight than those with a normal or above-average weight. For >20 kg weight gain, a higher proportion of newborns were born with above average weight than with normal and below average weight. There was a significant connection between prevalence of illnesses during pregnancy and body mass index. Those who were overweight before conception also had a higher incidence of intrapartum morbidity (p<0.05). Primiparas required episiotomy more often than multiparas (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Our results have shown from several approaches that suboptimal weight gain can lead to adverse consequences for perinatal outcomes. Therefore, attention should be paid to the development of an ideal body weight within antenatal care.