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Observational Study
. 2017 Dec 19;17(1):427.
doi: 10.1186/s12884-017-1592-1.

Blood pressure self-monitoring in pregnancy (BuMP) feasibility study; a qualitative analysis of women's experiences of self-monitoring

Lisa Hinton  1   2 , Katherine L Tucker  3 , Sheila M Greenfield  4 , James A Hodgkinson  4 , Lucy Mackillop  5 , Christine McCourt  6 , Trisha Carver  3 , Carole Crawford  3 , Margaret Glogowska  3 , Louise Locock  7 , Mary Selwood  3 , Kathryn S Taylor  3 , Richard J McManus  3
Affiliations
Observational Study

Blood pressure self-monitoring in pregnancy (BuMP) feasibility study; a qualitative analysis of women's experiences of self-monitoring

Lisa Hinton et al. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. .

Abstract

Background: Hypertensive disorders in pregnancy are a leading cause of maternal and fetal morbidity worldwide. Raised blood pressure (BP) affects 10% of pregnancies worldwide, of which almost half develop pre-eclampsia. The proportion of pregnant women who have risk factors for pre-eclampsia (such as pre-existing hypertension, obesity and advanced maternal age) is increasing. Pre-eclampsia can manifest itself before women experience symptoms and can develop between antenatal visits. Incentives to improve early detection of gestational hypertensive disorders are therefore strong and self-monitoring of blood pressure (SMBP) in pregnancy might be one means to achieve this, whilst improving women's involvement in antenatal care. The Blood Pressure Self-Monitoring in Pregnancy (BuMP) study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of SMBP in pregnancy.

Methods: To understand women's experiences of SMBP during pregnancy, we undertook a qualitative study embedded within the BuMP observational feasibility study. Women who were at higher risk of developing hypertension and/or pre-eclampsia were invited to take part in a study using SMBP and also invited to take part in an interview. Semi-structured interviews were conducted at the women's homes in Oxfordshire and Birmingham with women who were self-monitoring their BP as part of the BuMP feasibility study in 2014. Interviews were conducted by a qualitative researcher and transcribed verbatim. A framework approach was used for analysis.

Results: Fifteen women agreed to be interviewed. Respondents reported general willingness to engage with monitoring their own BP, feeling that it could reduce anxiety around their health during pregnancy, particularly if they had previous experience of raised BP or pre-eclampsia. They felt able to incorporate self-monitoring into their weekly routines, although this was harder post-partum. Self-monitoring of BP made them more aware of the risks of hypertension and pre-eclampsia in pregnancy. Feelings of reassurance and empowerment were commonly reported by the women in our sample.

Conclusions: SMBP in pregnancy was both acceptable and feasible to women in this small pilot study.

Keywords: Blood pressure; Hypertension; Pre-eclampsia; Pregnancy; Qualitative; Self-monitoring; Women’s experiences.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Ethics committee approval was given for this study by the Berkshire Ethics Committee, 09/H0505/66. All participants gave informed consent before taking part and have given written consent to their interview data being included in publications.

Consent for publication

This is covered in the ethics approval detailed above.

Competing interests

We have read and understood the BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth policy on declaration of interests and declare the following interests: RM has received blood pressure monitoring equipment for research studies from Omron and Lloyds Pharmacy. The monitors used in this study were purchased commercially. No other author has a conflict.

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

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