Outcome of cesarean delivery in women with excessive weight gain during pregnancy

The objective of this study was to assess the effects of excessive weight gain during pregnancy on the outcome of cesarean delivery. It was a cohort study comparing the outcome of cesarean delivery between 56 pregnant women with excessive weight gain during pregnancy and 75 pregnant women with no excessive weight gain during pregnancy, consecutively recruited at the Yaoundé Gyneco-Obstetric and Pediatric Hospital, Cameroon. In women delivered by cesarean section, excessive weight gain during pregnancy was found to predispose to: time interval from parietal incision to fetal extraction of more than five minutes, duration of cesarean section more than 60 minutes, blood loss more than 1000 ml during surgery, postoperative maternal complications, especially sepsis, fetal weight >3.5 kg and macrosomia. A systematic screening of excessive weight gain should be offered to all pregnant women, so as to prevent the adverse effects of excessive gestational weight gain on cesarean outcome.