Abstract

AEROBIC EXERCISE IN PREGNANT WOMEN AND GESTATIONAL HYPERTENSIVE DISORDERS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW AND META-ANALYSIS

Mayada Salem Alwafi*, Ashwaq Mousa Hommadi, Mohammed Abdullah Alqahtani, Norah Ibrahim Albahli, Abdullah Abdulrahman Nadershah, Tahani Salman Al Mansour, Abdullah Ahmed S. Alnajjar, Salman Hathal Alotaibi, Bayan Fadhel Alghadeer, Ahmed Fadhel AlGhadeer, Moudi Dkelallah Fahad Aloutebi

Abstract

Background & Purpose: The association among an increase in normal physical activity and a reduction in the risk of high blood pressure is properly documented for non-pregnant humans. it's been cautioned that exercising might also help prevent pre-eclampsia and its complications. The Aim of this work is to provide cumulative data about the effect of aerobic exercise regimen on in uncomplicated pregnant women. Methods: A systematic search was performed of PubMed, Cochrane library Ovid, Scopus & Google scholar to identify Obstetrics and Gynecology RCTs, clinical trials, and comparative studies, which studied the outcome of Exercise group versus Control group of pregnant women. A meta-analysis was done using fixed and random-effect methods. The primary outcome of interest was gestational hypertensive disorders. Secondary outcomes were rates of gestational hypertension and preeclampsia. Results: A total of 6 studies were identified involving 1448 pregnant women, with 785 pregnant women in Exercise group, and 663 pregnant women in Control group. Regarding primary outcome measures, fixed-effects model of the meta-analysis study showed significant decrease in gestational hypertensive disorders in Exercise group compared to Control group (p < 0.05). Regarding secondary outcome measures, fixed-effects model of the meta-analysis study showed significant decrease in gestational hypertension in Exercise group compared to Control group (p = 0.016). The fixed-effects model of the meta-analysis study showed non-significant difference in preeclampsia between the 2 groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion: To conclude, Aerobic exercise during pregnancy, as compared with being more sedentary, is associated with a significantly reduced risk of gestational hypertensive disorders overall.

Keywords: Aerobic Exercise, Pregnant Women, Gestational Hypertensive Disorders.