Research on the effects of maternal obesity on neonates has focused on clinical outcomes. Despite growing interest in obesity as a driver of healthcare expenditure, the financial impact of maternal obesity in the neonatal setting is little understood.
To determine if maternal obesity is associated with higher incurred costs in NICU and full-term nursery.
Data for all live births (1/1/14–12/31/19) at our academic medical center was obtained from the New York State Perinatal Data System for infants >23 weeks gestational age. Financial data was obtained from the hospital's cos
Of the 11,610 pregnancies in this retrospective study, obese mothers more frequently had other risk factors (smoke, pre-pregnancy and gestational diabetes, and pre-pregnancy and gestational hypertension). Infants born to obese mothers were more often preterm, had Cesarean delivery, lower APGAR scores, required assisted ventilation in the delivery room, and required NICU admission. Adjusting for maternal risk factors, infants born to obese mothers were less frequently preterm (OR 0.82 [0.74–0.91],
Maternal obesity correlates with other risk factors. Prolonged maternal stay may explain increased LOS and costs in the full-term nursery for infants born to obese mothers, as infants wait to be discharged with mothers.