Association of physical activity and cesarean section in the second trimester of pregnancy: a cohort study / 中华疾病控制杂志

ABSTRACT

@#Objective To explore the associations between cesarean section with different types and intensity of physical activity in the second trimester pregnant women． Methods Six hundred and seventy－two participants from the Chinese pregnant women cohort study ( CPWCS) were analyzed． The pregnancy physical activity questionnaire ( PPAQ) was used to collect the status of physical activities in pregnant women． The participants were followed up and the data of delivery way was collected． Logistic regression model was conducted to analyze the associations． Ｒesults A total of 273 pregnant women ( 40. 63%) were delivered by cesarean section． After adjusting age，pre-pregnancy BMI and history of childbirth，results of Logistic regression model showed that pregnant women with higher levels of exercise had a lower risk of cesarean section than those who did not participate in exercise ( OＲ= 0. 564，95% CI: 0. 338－0. 941) . In terms of physical activity intensity，pregnant women who participated in the higher level of moderate to vigorous physical activity had a lower risk of cesarean section than those who partici- pated in the lower level ( OＲ= 0．642，95% CI: 0．437－0．972) ． Conclusions Exercise and moderate to vigorous physical activity are protective factors for cesarean section． Health education should be further strengthened to encourage pregnant women to carry out appropriate physical activity during pregnancy．