Could High Volume of Physical Activities in Early Pregnancy Interfere with Deep Placentation?

Abstract

Abstract Background The impact of physical activity (PA) during pregnancy on obstetrical outcomes remains controversial. We followed pregnant women who reported more than 3 hours of sustained PA per week during the first trimester of pregnancy. Cases Total five eligible women were followed. We observed small placenta from the first trimester (median: 0.68; interquartile [IQ]: 0.62–0.97 multiples of median [MoM]) to delivery (median: 0.82; IQ: 0.71–0.94 MoM), high uterine artery pulsatility index in the first (median: 1.82; IQ: 1.68–1.99 MoM) and second trimesters (median: 1.33; IQ: 1.11–1.56 MoM) of pregnancy. Placenta pathology revealed deep vasculopathy in three (60%) cases. However, all participants delivered at term and none of them experienced preeclampsia. Conclusion This small case series suggest that high PA volume in first trimester could interfere with deep placentation.

Keywords

• pregnancy
• physical activity
• placenta
• biomarker
• ultrasound
• preeclampsia