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Higher maternal weight is related to poorer fetal autonomic function

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2020

D. N. Christifano Open the ORCID record for D. N. Christifano [Opens in a new window] ,
M. K. Taylor ,
S. E. Carlson ,
J. Colombo  and
K. M. Gustafson
D. N. Christifano*
Affiliation:
Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA University of Kansas Medical Center, Hoglund Brain Imaging Center, Kansas City, KS, USA
M. K. Taylor
Affiliation:
Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA
S. E. Carlson
Affiliation:
Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA
J. Colombo
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and The Schiefelbusch Institute for Lifespan Studies, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA
K. M. Gustafson
Affiliation:
University of Kansas Medical Center, Hoglund Brain Imaging Center, Kansas City, KS, USA Department of Neurology, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS, USA
*
Address for correspondence: D. N. Christifano, University of Kansas Medical Center, Dietetics and Nutrition, 3901 Rainbow Blvd, Mail Stop 1052, Kansas City, KS66103-2937, USA. Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Maternal obesity is an established risk factor for poor infant neurodevelopmental outcomes; however, the link between maternal weight and fetal development in utero is unknown. We investigated whether maternal obesity negatively influences fetal autonomic nervous system (ANS) development. Fetal heart rate variability (HRV) is an index of the ANS that is associated with neurodevelopmental outcomes in the infant. Maternal–fetal magnetocardiograms were recorded using a fetal biomagnetometer at 36 weeks (n = 46). Fetal HRV was represented by the standard deviation of sinus beat-to-beat intervals (SDNN). Maternal weight was measured at enrollment (12–20 weeks) and 36 weeks. The relationships between fetal HRV and maternal weight at both time points were modeled using adjusted ordinary least squares regression models. Higher maternal weight at enrollment and 36 weeks were associated with lower fetal HRV, an indicator of poorer ANS development. Further study is needed to better understand how maternal obesity influences fetal autonomic development and long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes.

Keywords

Fetal developmentmaternal weightautonomic nervous system
Type
Brief Reports
Information
Journal of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease , Volume 12 , Issue 3 , June 2021 , pp. 354 - 356
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Copyright
© Cambridge University Press and the International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease 2020

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