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

Objective: We set out to compare measurement of Body Mass Index (BMI) with selfreporting in women early in pregnancy. Study design: We studied 100 women booking for antenatal care in the first trimester with a normal ongoing pregnancy. Selfreported maternal weight and height were recorded and the Body Mass Index was calculated. Afterwards maternal weight and height were digitally measured and actual BMI was calculated. Results: If selfreporting is used for BMI classification, we found that 22% of women were classified incorrectly when BMI was measured. 12% of the women who were classified as having a normal selfreported BMI were overweight and 5% classified as overweight were obese. Similar findings have been reported outside pregnancy. Conclusions: These findings have implications for clinical practice, and for research studies exploring the relationship between maternal adiposity and pregnancy complications. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.