Abstract
This paper presents results from an analysis of patients’ records of 711 pregnant women (14-40 year olds) between June 2002 and March 2012 and is a retrospective study. The study investigated anthropometric characteristics and mean arterial pressure in preeclamptic and normotensive pregnant women visiting antenatal clinics in South Africa’s Mthatha area. BMI, WHR and MAP in Black African women in this area were carried out in order to fill a gap as data of association or correlation of such data on this population could not be located. The Research questions were: (a) Are MAP, BMI and WHR higher in preeclamptic women than in normotensive pregnant women in South Africa’s Mthatha area? and, (b) Which one of the parameters (BMI, WHR and MAP) can be used as a strong predictor of occurrences of preeclampsia in this area? The data were statistically analysed. The main conclusions were that there were higher MAP, BMI and WHR in preeclamptic women than those who were not. Also, the study found a high correlation of these parameters in preeclamptic women. BMI correlated with DBP, MAP and WHR (r=0.43, r=0.38, r=0.44, respectively), whereas WHR correlated with BMI and DBP only (r=0.44, 0.40, respectively). Therefore, MAP, BMI and WHR may be used as predictors of preeclampsia. Between the three, BMI correlated more with both DBP and MAP. Therefore, BMI may be a better predictor than WHR. Similar to other studies, we also found that age was a risk factor for preeclampsia and that waist circumference was higher in preeclamptic women. DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n20p2075
Highlights
The purpose of this research as part of a larger study was to investigate anthropometric characteristics and mean arterial pressure in preeclamptic and normotensive pregnant women visiting antenatal clinics in South Africa’s Mthatha area
We found that Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR) correlated with the weight, Body Mass Index (BMI) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (r=0.46; r=0.44; r=0.40, respectively)
This study found a higher Mean Arterial Pressure (MAP), BMI and WHR in preeclamptic women
Summary
The purpose of this research as part of a larger study was to investigate anthropometric characteristics and mean arterial pressure in preeclamptic and normotensive pregnant women visiting antenatal clinics in South Africa’s Mthatha area. Researchers are aware that the cut-off values that denote medical risk in the Caucasian population cannot be extrapolated to other populations. No research data on anthropometric characteristics and mean arterial pressure in preeclamptic and normotensive pregnant women visiting antenatal clinics in Mthatha area in South Africa could be located. The research sought to find out (a) whether the MAP, BMI and WHR were higher in preeclamptic women than in normotensive pregnant women who visited Mthatha surrounding clinics and (b) which one of the parameters (BMI, WHR and MAP) can be used as a strong predictor of occurrences of preeclampsia in this region? The research sought to find out (a) whether the MAP, BMI and WHR were higher in preeclamptic women than in normotensive pregnant women who visited Mthatha surrounding clinics and (b) which one of the parameters (BMI, WHR and MAP) can be used as a strong predictor of occurrences of preeclampsia in this region? The research objectives were (a) to compare the parameters such as MAP, BMI and WHR between preeclamptic women and normotensive pregnant women and (b) to find the association between MAP, BMI and WHR in the development of preeclampsia
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