Effect of Aerobic Exercise on Fetal Outcomes in Diabetic Pregnant Women

Abstract

AbstractBackground: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of aerobic exercise on fetal outcomes including body weight, fetal length, head circumference, infants' chest circumference, abdominal circumference and Apgar score 1 and 2 in gesta-tional diabetic women.Material and Methods: Thirty gestational diabetic women were randomly distributed into two groups equal in number. The control group received insulin therapy and diet recom-mendations, while the exercise group received the same treatment and aerobic exercise in form of treadmill training for 30 minutes/day for 3 times/week.Results: Comparing both groups post-intervention, results revealed that there were statistically non-significant differences in the gestational age (p=0.48), infants' length (p=0.86), head circumference (p=0. 15), infants' chest circumference (p=0.09), and Apgar score 1 (p=0.051). However, there was a statistical significant decrease in infants' weight (p=0.003), and abdom-inal circumference (p=0.001), as well as a statistical significant increase in Apgar score 2 (p=0.02).Conclusion: The aerobic exercise showed improvements in the fetal outcomes without producing any harmful effects to infants of diabetic women.