Abstract:
Back ground: Postpartum mothers with excessive gestational weight gain are at risk of weight
retention. However evidence is limited in this area. So far the extent to which the body
composition changes during postpartum persists and predictors of these changes have not been
documented in the Ethiopian women. Generating this evidence will help to design relevant
interventions.
Objective: To determine maternal body composition changes at 6- month postpartum assessed
by bioimpedance analysis and associated factors.
Methodology: We used data from a study of body composition (BC) in mother-infant pairs
conducted in Jimma University Specialized Hospital from January 2009 to June 2011. BC i.e. fat
mass (FM, kg) and fat-free mass (FFM, kg) was assessed using whole-body bioimpedance
analysis. Women were enrolled by consecutive sampling method. Data was double entered using
EpiData version 3.1and analyzed using STATA version 12. Multivariable linear regression was
performed to identify predictors of BC at 6 month postpartum. P-value < 0.05 was considered as
statistically significant.
Results: A total of 317 women who completed the six month follow-up were included in this
analysis. The mean ±SD age of the women was 24.3±4.6 years and 163 (51.7%) women were
primiparous. At the 6 month, 105 (33.2%) infants had exclusive breast feeding (EBF). Weight
(kg), BMI (kg/m2) and FFM at 6th month were lower than the delivery values (p < 0.001). In
contrast, FM difference was seen only in the legs (p=0.02). MUAC at delivery and 6-month did
not differ. Older age (ß=0.12kg, 95% CI, 0.02, 0.21) and higher weight at delivery (ß= 1.3, 95%
CI 0.83, 1.68) increased fat retention at 6-month. But single (ß= -3.5, 95% CI -5.62,-1.32) and
women who were not earning regular money (ß=-1.4, 95% CI -2.25,-0.45) had lower fat
retention. Higher FFM (ß=0.47, 95% CI 0.22, 0.71) and FM (ß= 0.29, 95% CI 0.08, 0.50) at
