Publications

MD Thesis: My Thesis

(Maternal Body Composition in first Trimester of Pregnancy)

My special interest is in Maternal Obesity and the fact that maternal obesity is associated with an increased risk of pregnancy complications for mother and baby, for example, gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, stillbirth and operative delivery

While the relationship between increased BMI and adverse pregnancy outcomes is consistent and epidemiologically robust, BMI does not measure adiposity directly. Like other anthropometric measurements. Its use as a surrogate marker for adiposity has limitations. I did a Prospective Research study of 1000 women on maternal and fetal body composition, using Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis for measuring maternal adiposity by sending a low, safe electrical current through the body. The resistance of the fat tissue to the current is termed bioelectrical impedance; it accurately measured body composition when it set against a person’s height, gender, and weight in women booking for antenatal care, in first trimester. Source of above is UCD School of medicine and Medical Science, Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital. My MD degree has been submitted by 11 February 2011. Revised MD thesis being awarded on the 29/03/2012.

Objective of MD:

1) To develop normograms for body composition using bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) in women booking for antenatal care.

2) To determine if assessment of maternal body fat using bioelectrical impedance is a better predictor of short-term and long-term pregnancy outcomes than conventional body mass index (BMI).

3) To determine if biomarkers (including leptin) are predictive of maternal body fat and body mass index, fetal size and subcutaneous fat assessed by ultrasound antenatally, and birth weight.

Subjects and Methods

The women were enrolled at their first antenatal visit between July 2008 and June 2009. To minimise confounding variables, the study was confined to Caucasian women with an ongoing singleton pregnancy who booked for antenatal care in the first trimester after a sonogram confirmed their dates and an ongoing singleton pregnancy. Height and weight were measured digitally, and BMI calculated. Body composition was analysed using advanced BIA (Tanita, MC 180).

Journal Papers

1. Barry S, Fattah C, Farah N, Broderick V, Stuart B, Turner MJ

The growing challenge of maternal obesity (editorial).

IMJ 2009:102;5-6.

2. Fattah C, Farah N, O’Toole F, Barry S, Stuart B, Turner MJ.

Body Mass Index (BMI) in women booking for antenatal care: comparison between selfreported and digital measurements.

Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2009;144:32-4.

3. Fattah C, Farah N, O’Connor N, Stuart B, Turner MJ.

The measurement of maternal adiposity.

J Obstet Gynaecol 2009;29:686-9.

4. Farah N, Stuart B, Harrold E, Fattah C, Kennelly M, Turner MJ.

Are there sex differences in Fetal Abdominal Subcutaneous Tissue (FAST)

Measurements?

Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2010;148:118-20.

5. Fattah C, Farah N, Barry S, O’Connor N, Stuart B, Turner MJ.

Maternal weight and body composition in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand 2010;89:952-5.

6. Turner MJ, Fattah C, O’Connor N, Farah N, Kennelly MM, Stuart B.

Body Mass Index and spontaneous miscarriage.

Eur J Obstet Gynecol 2010;151:169-70.

7. Fattah C, O’Connor N, Farah N, Kennelly MK, Stuart B, Turner MJ.

Normal body composition values in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Int J Bod Comp Res 2010;8:37-40.

8. Fattah C, Barry S, O’Connor N, Farah N, Stuart B, Turner MJ.

Maternal leptin and body composition in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Gynecol Endocrinol 2011;27:263-6.

9. O’Dwyer V, Farah N, Fattah C, O’Connor N, Kennelly MM, Turner MJ.

The risk of caesarean section in obese women analysed by parity.

Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2011;158:28-32.

10. V O’Dwyer, N O’Connor, C Fattah, N Farah, MM Kennelly, MJ Turner.

Waist circumference in the first trimester of pregnancy and risk of caesarean

section.

Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2011;159:483-4.

11. Farah N, McGoldrick A, Fattah C, O’Connor N, Kennelly MM, Turner MJ.

Body Mass Index and Glucose Intolerance during pregnancy in white European

women.

J Reprod Infertil 2012;13:95-99.

12. O’Dwyer V, Monaghan B, Fattah C, Farah N, Kennelly MM, Turner MJ.

Miscarriage after sonographic confirmation of an ongoing pregnancy in women

with moderate and severe obesity.

Obes Facts 2012;5:393-8.

13. Kent E, O’Dwyer V, Fattah C, Farah N, O’Connor C, Turner MJ.

Correlation between birth weight and maternal body composition.

Obstet Gynecol 2013;121:46-50.

Conference Papers