Metabolic Disturbances in Obese Pregnant Residents of an Industrial Region (The Urals, Russia).

OBJECTIVES: We sought to investigate the presence of metabolic disturbances in obese pregnant women living in an industrial city in Russia.

METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed the ambulatory cards of 96 pregnant women with alimentary obesity (aged 23-34), their birth history, and their newborn development history (anamnesis).

RESULTS: Sixty-two percent of women had obstetric and gynecological complications. Pregnancy complications (gestational diabetes, risk of pregnancy interruption, toxicosis in the first half gestation, gestosis) were experienced in 36% of women. Increased glucose in the blood was accompanied by higher concentrations of atherogenic components (i.e., triglycerides and low density lipoproteins (LDL)). The imbalance of metabolic processes in the homeostatic system of pregnant obese women (total protein: 50.4 g/L, cholesterol: 6.1 mmol/L, LDL: 4.1 mmol//L, high density lipoproteins (HDL): 0.85 mmol/L, triglycerides: 3.5 mmol/L, glucose: 7.0 mmol/L) formed a pathogenic link in the development of obesity.

CONCLUSIONS: Increased glucose and atherogenic lipid profile and decreased protein levels in the blood promote the processes of the adiposity in women and aggravate the pathological processes of gestation and the postnatal period. Pregnant obese women of reproductive age form a group at high risk of developing complications during gestation and parturition. Obesity is not a contraindication for pregnancy, although the risk of complications is great.