Women’s Quality of Life at 6 Weeks Postpartum: Influence of the Discomfort Present in the Puerperium

Juan Miguel Martínez-Galiano, Antonio Hernández-Martínez, Julián Rodríguez-Almagro, Miguel Delgado-Rodríguez, Ana Rubio-Alvarez and Juan Gómez-Salgado
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Juan Miguel Martínez-Galiano: Department of Nursing, University of Jaen, 23071 Jaen, Spain
Antonio Hernández-Martínez: Mancha-Centro Hospital, Alcázar de San Juan, 13600 Ciudad Real, Spain
Julián Rodríguez-Almagro: Department of Nursing, University of Castilla la Mancha, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain
Miguel Delgado-Rodríguez: Consortium for Biomedical Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), 28029 Madrid, Spain
Ana Rubio-Alvarez: Obstetrics Service, University Hospital of Torrejon de Ardoz, 28850 Madrid, Spain
Juan Gómez-Salgado: Department of Nursing, University of Huelva, 21007 Huelva, Spain

IJERPH, 2019, vol. 16, issue 2, 1-9

Abstract: Background : Discomfort during the puerperium period is very frequent in the lives of women but the influence of this discomfort on the women’s quality of life has been little studied. The objective of this study is to establish the association between discomfort and frequent problems of women in the puerperium and their quality of life score. Methods : A cross-sectional study on postpartum Spanish women was performed. Women older than 18 years and who had had a live birth were included. Less than 1% of women refused to participate in the study. Data were collected on socio-demographic, obstetric and newborn variables, on maternal problems/ discomfort in the postnatal period and on parameters that are quality of life indicators. An ad hoc online questionnaire which included the SF-36 Health Survey was used. Crude mean difference (cMD) and adjusted mean difference (aMD) were calculated through multiple linear regression. Results : 2990 women participated in the study. The greater problems causing quality of life loss were depressive symptoms (aMD = −12.40, CI 95%: −10.79, −14.01), lactation problems (aMD = −4.30, CI 95%: −2.97, −5.63), problems for sexual intercourse after childbirth (aMD = −6.34, CI 95%: −5.07, −7.60) and urinary incontinence (aMD = −4.97, CI 95%: −6.30, −3.65), among others. These have been detected as risk factors that affect the quality of life of the postpartum woman. Conclusions : The discomfort and problems manifested in the 6 weeks after childbirth have an influence that deeply affects the quality of life of postpartum women.

Keywords: health-related quality of life; pregnancy; puerperium; maternal discomfort; postpartum problems (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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