Associations between maternal overweight and obesity with cesarean section delivery in Middle East and North Africa region: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and attributable risk - PubMed
4 days ago
- #Maternal Health
- #Obesity
- #Cesarean Section
- The study examines the association between maternal overweight/obesity and cesarean section (CS) delivery in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
- Overweight and obese women had a 35% and 77% higher likelihood of CS delivery, respectively, compared to women with normal BMI.
- The risk of CS delivery increased with obesity class: 78% for class I, 121% for class II, and 161% for class III.
- Overweight women were also at higher risk of emergency CS (aOR 1.34).
- An estimated 25.9% and 43.5% of CS deliveries were attributable to maternal overweight and obesity, respectively.
- The highest population-attributable risk fractions (PARFs) were found in Syria (15.9% for overweight) and Saudi Arabia (35.4% for obesity).
- The study suggests promoting healthy weight before and during pregnancy to reduce unnecessary CS deliveries.
- Limitations include lack of standardized BMI definitions and substantial heterogeneity in subgroup analyses.