A new study co-authored by UAB Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Associate Professor Sara Gould, MD, found that resistance training during pregnancy does not cause decreased blood flow to the fetus.

Recently accepted into the International Olympic Committee World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport, the study will be presented at their annual meeting taking place at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco on March 12-14, 2020.

The abstract – that will be published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine’s International Olympic Committee issue prior to the meeting – shows that blood flow to the placenta does not decrease during resistance training, as measured by 3-dimensional power flow Doppler ultrasonography.

“This is a new application of a technique for documenting blood placental blood flow. We’re able to assess in real-time how resistance training is affecting the blood flow to the placenta,” says Gould.  “There’s very little known about how resistance training affects women and their babies during pregnancy, so this research is very exciting.”

For more information about the upcoming conference and research presentations, visit the IOC website and download the conference academic program.