• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.35 no.7
• /
• pp.1277-1284
• /
• 2005

Objectives: This study was designed to investigate the effect of delivery nursing care using essential oils on labor stress response, labor anxiety and postpartum status anxiety for primipara. Methods: This study used nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. The subjects of this experiment consisted of forty eight primipara with single gestation, full term, & uncomplicated pregnancies. Twenty four primipra were in the experimental and control group each. Their mean age was 27.9 years old, their mean gestation period 279.9 days. As a treatment, delivery nursing care using essential oils was applied by nurses. Data collected epinephrine, norepinephrine, anxiety during labor. In the 24 hours after birth, the data for the postpartum mother's status anxiety was collected. Data was analyzed by t-test, repeated measures ANOVA, Mann-Whitney U test, & Wilcoxon signed ranks test with SPSS Program. Results : Plasma epinephrine, norepinephrine were significantly low in the experimental group (P=0.001, P=0.033, respectively). There was no significant difference between the two groups in anxiety during labor and postpartum mother's status anxiety. Conclusion : These findings indicate that delivery nursing care using essential oils could be effective in decreasing plasma epinephrine, norepinephrine. But, that could not be verified in decreasing mother's anxiety.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.7 no.1
• /
• pp.67-79
• /
• 2001

This study was designed to verify the effect of Doula-type-delivery nursing care on plasma $\beta$-endorphin, serum cortisol, related to delivery stress during labor, and postpartum anxiety of primipara by a quasi experiment(nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design), from December, 1999 to August, 2000. The subjects of this experiment consisted of sixty eight primipara, with single gestation, full term, uncomplicated pregnancies, thirty three for the experimental group and thirty five for the control group. Their mean age was 26.1 years for the experimental group and 25.5 years for the control group. Their mean gestation period was 39.7 weeks for the experimental group and 40.1 weeks for the control group. As treatment, Doula-type-delivery nursing care was given for the experimental group. Data assessed plasma $\beta$-endorphin, serum cortisol during labor, and anxiety during postpartum. Plasma $\beta$-endorphin, serum cortisol were measured in the latent phase before treatment(pre-test) and the transition phase after treatment(posttest). Also, anxiety was measured in the latent phase before treatment(pre-test) and 24 hours postpartum after treatment(posttest). Data was analyzed by t-test, $x^2$-test, Repeated measures ANOVA with SAS Program. The results of this study were as follows; 1. Plasma $\beta$-endorphin was significantly elevated in the experimental group who were cared for with Doula-type-delivery nursing care during labor(P=.0463). 2. No significant group effects were found, but significant time effects were found for serum cortisol. 3. The postpartum anxiety of the experimental group was significantly lower than the control group(P=.0110). In conclusion, these findings indicate that Doula-type-delivery nursing care during labor could be effective in increasing maternal plasma $\beta$-endorphin and decreasing postpartum anxiety. Doula-type-delivery nursing care during labor could be applied as an effective nursing treatment for primipara.

• Child Health Nursing Research
• /
• v.28 no.2
• /
• pp.103-111
• /
• 2022

Purpose: This study investigated the physical and emotional health of South Korean mothers of preterm infants in the early postpartum period. Methods: In this descriptive correlational study, the participants included 91 mothers of preterm infants who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of a tertiary hospital in South Korea. Physical health status was measured using a self-reported questionnaire, postpartum depression using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, anxiety using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, and guilt using a 4-item scale. Results: Fatigue had the highest score among mothers' physical health problems, followed by shoulder pain, nipple pain, neck pain. The average postpartum depression score was 11.02 points, and 44% of women had postpartum depression with a score of 12 or above. Postpartum depression significantly was correlated with physical health (r=.35, p=.001), anxiety (r=.84, p<.001), and guilt (r=.75, p<.001) and was significantly higher for women with multiple births, and preterm infants who required ventilator and antibiotic treatment. Anxiety also showed a significant difference according to preterm infants' condition. Conclusion: The significant correlations between postpartum depression and physical health, anxiety, and guilt indicate a need for nursing interventions that provide integrated management of mothers' physical and emotional health.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.11 no.1
• /
• pp.38-45
• /
• 2005

Purpose: This study was to examine the degree of prenatal emotional status, preparation for delivery, postpartum social support, and postpartum blues and to investigate the relationship of the above variables in postpartum women. Method: The subjects were 131 postpartum women. Selection criteria were women who were 2 to 8 weeks post delivery. After Informed consent was obtained, they were asked to fill out a self-administered questionnaire. The instrument was a Postnatal Depression & Anxiety check list. Result: The mean age of the subjects was 29.3 years, and 63.4% of subjects delivered their children by vaginal birth. 18.3 percent had felt depressed during their pregnancy. The mean score of the postpartum blues was 19.2. 61.8 percent of the subjects had postpartum blues and 8.4 percent experienced postpartum depression. Monthly income was negatively correlated to postpartum blues (r=-.189, p<.05), but the emotional status during pregnancy had a significant and positive relationship. However, preparation for delivery had no significant correlation with postpartum blues. While husband support and social support had a tendency to have a negative correlation. Conclusion: Further research is needed to identify the factors that affect the emotional status during pregnancy with various scales. Also, intervention programs to increase emotional support for pregnancy and husband support are needed.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.8 no.1
• /
• pp.7-19
• /
• 2002

This study was to compare mother's postpartum physical health, mental health, and role performance between mothers with fullterm infants and preterm infants over 3 months postpartum period. The study used a correlational and longitudinal design and was secondary data analysis from a large study. A convenience sample of 132 mothers who had fullterm and preterm infants was followed up for 3 times (postpartum 1-2 days, 6 weeks, and 3 months) during the first 3 months postpartum period. Postpartum physical health was assessed by level of fatigue in the morning and in the afternoon, and number of physical symptoms. Postpartum mental health was assessed by positive affect, anxiety, and depression; and postpartum role performance was measured by role functional status. Mothers with preterm infants experienced higher levels of fatigue in the morning, lower positive affect, higher anxiety and higher depression over 3 data collection time points, compared to mothers with fullterm infants. Mothers with preterm infants also resumed lesser self-care activity and social and community activity than the counterparts. It implies that some aspects of preterm birth and caring for preterm infants continue to negatively affect the mother's health outcomes during the postpartum period.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.10 no.1
• /
• pp.15-22
• /
• 2004

Purpose: This study was to examine the effect of postpartum exercise on mental health. Mental health comprises a 9 symptom dimension of Somatization, Obsessive-Compulsive, Interpersonal Sensitivity, Depression, Anxiety, Hostility, Phobic anxiety, Paranoid Ideation, and Psychoticism. Method: A non-equivalent pre-test, post-test control group study was conducted. Fifty-two puerperal women who were admitted to a postpartum ward of a mother-baby clinic in Pusan were recruited; 26 women were assigned to the experimental group and 26 women to the control group. Postpartum exercise was applied to the experimental group from postpartum day 3 for a period of 8 weeks while no exercise program was applied to the control group. Mental health with SCL-90-R was measured before and after exercise. Data was analyzed using mean, $x^2$-test, t-test, and ANOVA by SPSS 10.0. Result: The mental health status in the exercise group did not show a statistically significant decrease when compared to that of the control group. Conclusion: There is no effect of postpartum exercise on women's mental health during the first 8 weeks of the postpartum period. Further studies are needed for randomized clinical trials with a larger sample size.

• Journal of Korean Medicine for Obesity Research
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.63-75
• /
• 2001

Objectives : Many women associate one or more of their pregnancies with the development of adult obesity. This study was designed to determine influencing factors on postpartum weight retention and whether the breast-feeding was available to weight loss in puerperium. Methods : Articles from the literature on 'postpartum weight retention' were examined. Results : These articles show that different factors were related with postpartum weight retention. This study suggests that moderate weight gain during pregnancy is important to prevent postpartum maternal obesity. Especially weight gain from 20 weeks to 36 weeks of pregnancy is important. Falling in depression and anxiety during postpartum period should be avoided and social support is also needed. Delivery at the financially secure status is also recommended. Sufficient physical activity and exercise are needed to prevent from postpartum weight retention. Weight loss with dieting and exercise during lactation don't have a bad influence on the growth of infants.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.6 no.4
• /
• pp.493-505
• /
• 2000

The purpose of this study was to contribute to maternal nursing in the early postpartum stage and neonate nursing. Data were collected through self-report questionaires which were constructed to include perception of the newborn scale, parental role stress scale and anxiety scale. The subjects consisted of 81 mothers of preterm babies at seven hospitals in Seoul and Kyoungki-Do, from July 15 to September 30, 2000. Data were analysed by SPSS/PC using frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, ANOVA, t-test and Pearson correlation coefficient. The results were summarized as follows ; 1. The mean of perception of the newborn in the early postpartum stage was 1.35. The mean of parental role stress was 10.78. The mean of anxiety of mother was 39.74. 2. There were significant positive correlation between parental role stress and anxiety of mothers. 3. There were not significant influencing general characteristics to perception of the newborn and parental role stress. General characteristics related to the level of anxiety were economic status, expectation of pregnancy, birthing order, newborn weight. The above findings indicated that the level of parental role stress and anxiety of preterm birth mothers were correlated. Therefore nursing intervention for reducing parental role stress and anxiety should be provided for preterm birth mothers.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
• /
• v.24 no.4
• /
• pp.696-705
• /
• 1994

This study was done to provide a basis for home health care management for women following Cesarean delivery. Furthermore it was initiated as an possible application of home health care in the future. In this study, client selection criteria was developed by the researcher and assessment tools for home health care, recording system and problem oriented recording system were revised from Jun's(1993) methods. The selection criteria tool for home health care for women who had a Cesarean delivery was structured and consisted of five areas : physical status, functional status, psychological-emetional status, educational needs status and environmental status. The structured assessment tool consisted of general items, obstetric history, past medical history, methods of feeding, medications taken before ad-mission, laboratory results, discharge instructions, discharge medications, family tree, economic status, environmental status, a map, health assessment of women and their newborns. The visit note consisted of the date : nursing problems : nursing process including initial assessment : nursing goals : visit plan : health status of the postpartum women and their newborn : nursing diagnoses : nursing implementation evaluation : summary : next visit plan and revision. The problem oriented recording system consisted of the date, problem numbers, nursing diagnoses, problem appearance date, problem resolution date. The results of the research are as follows : The seven cases having had a Cesarean delivery were discharged on an average on the 5th day after the Cesarean birth. The total number of home visits was 13. According to Cordon's functional health patterns the total possible nursing diagnoses was 34 diagnoses for the methers and their newborns. Among the 34 diagnoses, there were 13 diagnoses in the health perception /management pattern, 7 in the psychosocial health perception / management pattern, 8 in the psychosocial self-perception, 2 in the nutrition / metabolism pattern of physical function, 2 in the knowledge deficit of newborn management, anxiety related to newborn management, knowledge deficit related to disease process of new-born, anxiety related to disease process of newborn anxiety related to prognosis of baby's condition, knowledge deficit related to newborn jaundice each appeared once. The changes in the number of nursing diagnoses was related to not the number of visits but to the number of nursing diagnoses decreasing. The con-tent of the home health care was categorized ac-cording to assessment, direct care, counseling, education, family care. The recommendation based on the results of this research are Home health care nurses for Cesarean postpartum women and their neonates requires comprehensive knowledge of pregnancy, delivery, and the postpartum period and of the neonate so that they can provide appropriate care and holistic views. Most of cases terminated after the second visit, this outcome may be related to the subjects being discharged on the 5th day after delivery. Therefore, study done with earlier discharge after delivery may have different outcome. It is very hard to assess psychological aspects that need follow-up and to develop communication channels.

• Women's Health Nursing
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.326-336
• /
• 2021

Purpose: This study explored the prevalence of prenatal and postpartum depression in Korea and its influencing factors from 20 weeks of pregnancy to 12 weeks postpartum. Methods: Using a prospective cohort study design, data on women's depression and its influencing factors were collected at 20, 28, and 36 weeks of pregnancy and at 2, 6, and 12 weeks postpartum. The participants were 219 women and 181 spouses during pregnancy; and 183 mothers and 130 spouses after childbirth. Depressive symptoms were assessed by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and influencing factors were measured by the Postpartum Depression Predictors Inventory-Revised, parity, and spousal depression. Results: The prevalence of maternal depression was 10.5% to 21.5% before birth, and it was 22.4% to 32.8% postpartum. The prevalence slightly decreased during the prenatal period but peaked at 2 weeks postpartum. Antenatal depression was influenced by low socioeconomic status, lower self-esteem, having experienced prenatal depression, having experienced prenatal anxiety, a previous history of depression, lower social support, lower marital satisfaction, and higher life stress. The factors influencing postpartum depression were lower self-esteem, having experienced prenatal depression, having experienced prenatal anxiety, lower social support, lower marital satisfaction, and higher life stress, as well as infant temperament and maternal blues. Parity and spousal depression had no impacts. Conclusion: The prevalence and influencing factors of maternal depression changed over time. Nurses need to screen women accordingly during the perinatal period and should provide education or counseling to prevent depression and promote adjustment to parenthood.