Khat Chewing During Pregnancy: an Insight on an Ancient Problem Impact of Chewing Khat on Maternal and Fetal Outcome among Yemeni Pregnant Women

Mahmoud A Abdel-Aleem

doi:10.15436/2380-5595.15.004

Abstract

This study was conducted to clarify the impact of Khat chewing on maternal and fetal outcomes during pregnancy of Yemeni women. Khat chewing during pregnancy can affect maternal health with a damaging effect on the baby’s health and wellbeing. This study was conducted to clarify the impact of Khat chewing on maternal and fetal outcomes during pregnancy of Yemeni women. This prospective study enrolled 60 regular Khat chewing pregnant women and 120 non-Khat chewing pregnant women, selected from those attended with singleton pregnancy in their first or second trimester from the ANC unit of AL-Gamhouri Teaching Hospital in Taiz (Republic of Yemen). Khat chewer pregnant women were having statistically significant risk of 6 times for preterm labor, 3.83 times for labor induction and statistically insignificant risk of 4.10 times for preeclampsia, 2.78 for blood transfusion and fetal distress, 2.05 for PROM, 2.03 for PPH and perineal tears and 2.02 for IUFD. There is significant lower mean hemoglobin concentration at delivery when compared with the control. Khat chewer pregnant women were having statistically significant risk of 6.56 times for breech presentation; 8.94 times to deliver fetuses with low birth weight (< 2500 gm); 6.0 times for neonatal admission to the ICU and statistically insignificant risk of 3.54 times for perinatal mortality and 2.02 times for congenital malformations. This study concluded that Khat chewing is globally associated with a negative impact on maternal and fetal wellbeing.

Highlights

Pregnancy is an important event during a woman’s reproductive life and her health as well as that of her fetus’s become sensitive to outside stimuli like tobacco smoking, Khat chewing during pregnancy can have a damaging effect on the baby’s health and wellbeing[1,2].During pregnancy, several studies documented a number of negative reproductive health consequences and adverse pregnancy outcomes of Khat chewing, including lower lipoid, sexual impotence, and inhibition of utero-placental blood flow, leading to a teratogenic effect and the impairment of fetal growth[3].Studies showed that the oral administration of cathinone, caffeine and their combinations for 15 days increased the arousal in male rats as evidenced by increased mounting performance and anogenital investigatory behavior
The results showed that Khat reduces the percentage of pregnancy rates and increased the mean post-implantation losses in the treated groups while there was no change in the controls which received the vehicle only[6]
Regular Khat chewer pregnant woman was defined as pregnant women who chew Khat at least twice a week, for at least one year including the time of current pregnancy

Summary

Introduction

Pregnancy is an important event during a woman’s reproductive life and her health as well as that of her fetus’s become sensitive to outside stimuli like tobacco smoking, Khat chewing during pregnancy can have a damaging effect on the baby’s health and wellbeing[1,2].During pregnancy, several studies documented a number of negative reproductive health consequences and adverse pregnancy outcomes of Khat chewing, including lower lipoid, sexual impotence, and inhibition of utero-placental blood flow, leading to a teratogenic effect and the impairment of fetal growth[3].Studies showed that the oral administration of cathinone, caffeine and their combinations for 15 days increased the arousal (motivation) in male rats as evidenced by increased mounting performance (sex drive) and anogenital investigatory behavior. Pregnancy is an important event during a woman’s reproductive life and her health as well as that of her fetus’s become sensitive to outside stimuli like tobacco smoking, Khat chewing during pregnancy can have a damaging effect on the baby’s health and wellbeing[1,2]. Several studies documented a number of negative reproductive health consequences and adverse pregnancy outcomes of Khat chewing, including lower lipoid, sexual impotence, and inhibition of utero-placental blood flow, leading to a teratogenic effect and the impairment of fetal growth[3]. Erectile and ejaculatory responses, measured in the study, showed no stimulant effect[4]. A deleterious effects of Khat addiction were. Impact of chewing Khat on maternal and fetal outcome among Yemeni pregnant women (2015) J Gynecol Neonatal Biol 1(2): 28-31

Methods

Results

Conclusion