Interventions to reduce postpartum stress in first-time mothers: a randomized-controlled trial

BMC Women's Health

Research Article

Monique Chaaya¹  Hibah Osman²  Georges Naasan³  Matilda Saliba⁴ 

[1] Department of Epidemiology and Population Health, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon;Department of Family Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center, Beirut, Lebanon;Memory and Aging Center, Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, USA;Research Institute of McGill University Health Center, Montreal, Canada;

关键词: Postpartum;    Stress;    Intervention studies;    Hotlines;    Film;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1472-6874-14-125

 received in 2014-04-25, accepted in 2014-09-29,  发布年份 2014

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundThe postpartum period can be a challenging time particularly for first-time mothers. This study aimed to assess two different interventions designed to reduce stress in the postpartum among first-time mothers.MethodsHealthy first-time mothers with healthy newborns were recruited from hospitals in Beirut, Lebanon after delivery. The two interventions were a 20-minute film addressing common stressors in the postpartum period and a 24-hour telephone support hotline. Participants were randomized to one of four study arms to receive either the postpartum support film, the hotline service, both interventions, or a music CD (control). Participants were interviewed at eight to twelve weeks postpartum for assessment of levels of stress as measured by the Cohen Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10).ResultsOf the 632 eligible women, 552 (88%) agreed to participate in the study. Of those, 452 (82%) completed the study. Mean PSS-10 scores of mothers who received the film alone (15.76) or the film with the hotline service (15.86) were significantly lower than that of the control group (18.93) (p-value <0.01). Among mothers who received the hotline service alone mean PSS-10 score (16.98) was also significantly lower than that of the control group (p-value <0.05).ConclusionsBoth our postpartum support film and the 24-hour telephone hotline service reduced stress in the postpartum period in first-time mothers. These simple interventions can be easily implemented and could have an important impact on the mental wellbeing of new mothers.Trial registrationThe trial was registered with clinicaltrials.gov (identifier # NCT00857051) on March 5, 2009.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Osman et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014