Abstracts Womens Studies

Effectiveness of health promotion education and usual care compared to usual care alone for postpartum women with a history of gestational diabetes

by Krista Kleinhammer

Objective: The purpose of this meta-analysis is to determine whether Health Promotion Education and Usual Care is more effective at lowering body mass index and oral glucose tolerance test in women with a history of gestational diabetes versus Usual Care alone. Methods: A systematic search of literature was performed, and studies were appraised via Physiotherapy Evidence Database scores after being filtrated through eligibility criteria. Effect size, confidence intervals, level of homogeneity, and statistical significance was analyzed through forest plots for post-intervention data on body mass index and oral glucose tolerance test. Results: Six articles were included, two contained both outcome measures post-intervention data, two contained only body mass index, and two contained only oral glucose tolerance test. Health Promotion Education and Usual Care resulted in statistically significant reduction of body mass index levels, however, did not demonstrate a reduction in oral glucose. A sub-analysis on post-intervention weight change demonstrated a significant reduction across six studies. Conclusions: Based on the findings, Health Promotion Education with Usual Care is more effective at reducing body mass index and weight than Usual Care alone. More research is necessary to define the optimal intervention type, delivery, and frequency of provider contact.