The Changes in Fear of Childbirth in Pregnancy During and Before the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

\n Background: We aimed to compare the changes experienced by pregnant women before and during the pandemic regarding fear of childbirth andhow much they were affected by factors such as age, education level, and planned delivery type.Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study comparedthe pre-pandemic pregnant group (July 2019 and December 2019) and the pandemic group (November 2020 and May 2021) of patients atKütahya Health Sciences University Evliya Çelebi Training and Research Hospital. A total of 696 pregnant womenin their second trimesterwere included in the study. All of them were literate andvoluntarily agreed to participate in the study. Data were collected with the Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire (WDEQ-A), and the outpatient doctor asked the questions face-to-face.Results: The mean age of the pregnant women participating in the study was 31.6±6.8 years. While the total Wijma score was 62.1±25.1 in the pre-pandemic group, it was 61.3±26.4 in the pandemic group, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (p=0.738).While 25.7% (n=179) of all participants had a normal fear of childbirth, 22% (n=153) had a mild fear of childbirth, 27% (n=188) had a moderate fear of childbirth, and 25.3% (n=176) had a severe fear of childbirth (Wijma score of 85 and above). When the pre-pandemic and the pandemic period were compared, the fear of childbirth wasunchanged in pregnant women at all education levels (p=0.079, p=0.957, p=0.626, p=0.539, p=0.202).Conclusion: When the pre-pandemic and pandemic periods are compared, it is seen that the fear of childbirth didnot change within each education level. Informing pregnant women about the effects of COVID-19 during the pandemic period may be effective in reducing fear of childbirth and reducing the numberof cesarean sections due to fear of birth.