Objective: To explore the use of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index percentiles for adolescents to classify adolescents for gestational weight gain recommendations.
Design: A descriptive study using secondary data analysis.
Setting: Memphis, Tennessee.
Participants: Three hundred forty-seven primiparous Black adolescents, aged 12 to 19 years, who delivered full-term infants.
Main outcome measures: Adult and adolescent body mass index categories, gestational weight gain patterns, and neonatal birthweight.
Results: Adolescents, especially smaller adolescents, were misclassified when the current Institute of Medicine adult body mass index categories were used to classify them for gestational weight gain when compared to the use of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index percentiles for adolescents as a gestational weight gain classification schema. Mean neonatal birthweights were similar no matter which schema was used. A large proportion of adolescents gained more than is recommended by the Institute of Medicine.
Conclusions: The current gestational weight gain recommendations based on adult body mass index categories may not be sufficiently specific to attain the best maternal and neonatal outcomes for adolescents. Creation of gestational weight gain recommendations based on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention body mass index percentiles would potentially assist clinicians in counseling adolescents regarding gestational weight gain.