Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Hani Atrash, MD, MPH, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE E-87, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-3800, hka1@cdc.gov, Sam Posner, PhD, Division of Reproductive Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd NE, K-21, Atlanta, GA 30333, and Kay Johnson, MPH, EdM, Dartmouth Medical School, 175 Red Pine Road, Hinesburg, VT 05461.

While past public health achievements have greatly improved pregnancy outcomes, perinatal problems still occur. A great opportunity lies in prevention strategies that, if implemented prior to conception would result in further improvement of pregnancy outcomes. There is substantial evidence that, promoting the health and wellness of women and couples prior to pregnancy translates into more favorable outcomes.

Recently, a “Select Panel” was convened by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to develop and publish “Recommendations to Improve Preconception Health and Care”. The Panel defined Preconception Care as a set of interventions “that aim to identify and modify biomedical, behavioral, and social risks to a woman's health or pregnancy outcome through prevention and management, emphasizing those factors which must be acted on before conception or early in pregnancy to have maximal impact”. Several professional organizations have also published documents outlining the “clinical” content of preconception care suggesting a focus on three components: 1) screening for risks, 2) health promotion and education, and 3) interventions to address identified risks.

However, we continue to lack practical tools and protocols to guide consumers, providers, program and policy leaders and funders for the most effective approaches for delivering preconception care interventions. As a next step in the implementation of the "recommendations" workgroups will be convened in June 2006 to determine what the minimum preconception care intervention at all levels should be. This presentation aims at sharing with participants the products of these workgroups' meetings and to discuss with them summaries of these documents.

Learning Objectives:

• 1. Identifying a set of proven components of preconception care, supported by strong evidence of effectiveness if delivered before pregnancy
• 2. Describing ways in which public health can assure the systematic delivery of proven interventions for women and couple who have intended births
• 3. Learning about the opportunities for women's health promotion through preconception care, and
• 4. Understanding the benefits to long term health of women that can be motivated through the anticipation of an intended birth

Keywords: Infant Health, Maternal Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation