Assessment of weight gain during pregnancy: an Italian practical approach

Weight increase during pregnancy is an extremely useful parameter since adequate weight gain is associated with better outcomes for the health of both the mother and the baby. On the other hand, if there is an inappropriate change in weight, either too much or too little, both mother and foetus are more greatly exposed to numerous complications with different degrees of seriousness. Therefore it is necessary to rely on appropriate guidelines that provide medical and obstetric personnel with clear directions regarding correct weight gain. Since the recommendations of the guidelines must be adapted to the patient’s specific profile, establishing the ideal weight gain in numerical terms is not immediate. Therefore we developed an instrument for estimating the ideal weight gain during pregnancy, which is quick and easy to use and takes the specific subject's characteristics into account, in order to allow a personalized evaluation. A pocket instrument was developed, with a circular shape and two sides (A and B). On side A, two concentric disks contain weight and height, which allow pre-pregnancy BMI (Body Mass Index) to be calculated. On side B, three concentric disks contain respectively: a solar calendar, a calendar calculating the week of pregnancy and a window behind which the desired weight gain values scroll, divided by weight category. We believe that the instrument may be an additional helpful tool to control weight gain during pregnancy.