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Review
. 2022 May 20:15:100155.
doi: 10.1016/j.eurox.2022.100155. eCollection 2022 Aug.

Assessing the effects of exercise on post-partum fatigue symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Mohsen Kazeminia  1 , Nader Salari  2 , Shamarina Shohaimi  3 , Hakimeh Akbari  4 , Ali Asghar Khaleghi  4 , Mohammad-Rafi Bazrafshan  5 , Masoud Mohammadi  4
Affiliations
Review

Assessing the effects of exercise on post-partum fatigue symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Mohsen Kazeminia et al. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol X. .

Abstract

Background: The level of activity in women who have given birth is very low despite the great benefits of exercise on their physical and mental health. There are some contradictories between the results of several preliminary studies on the effects of exercise on post-partum fatigue reduction. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the effects of exercise on decreasing postpartum fatigue in general and, specifically, in Iran using meta-analysis.

Methods: In this study, the articles printed in international and national centres of SID, MagIran, IranMedex, IranDoc, Cochrane, Embase, ScienceDirect, Scopus, PubMed and Web of Science (WoS), were used to find the studies electronically published up to 2021. The studies' heterogeneity was examined using the I2 index, and subsequently, a random-effects model was applied. Data analysis was performed within the Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software (version 2).

Results: Finally, nine articles met the inclusion criteria in this systematic and meta-analysis review. The included samples were 456 patients in the intervention group and 446 in the control group. The mean score of fatigue after the intervention was 8.1 ± 1.1 lower than before intervention in the experimental group, and this difference was statistically significant (p ≤ 0.001).

Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that exercise reduces postpartum fatigue, which can be used for counseling and treatment by gynecologists. Reduce postpartum problems in women and increase the quality of life after childbirth.

Keywords: CONSORT, Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials; Exercise; Fatigue; MESH, Medical Subject Headings; Meta-analysis; PRISMA, Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis; Postpartum; Systematic review; WoS, Web of Science.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow diagram of study selection.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Accumulation diagram of studies entered in a meta-analysis using standard mean difference index before the intervention.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Accumulation diagram of studies entered in a meta-analysis using standard mean difference index after the intervention.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
. Forest plot of studies entered into the meta-analysis using the standardized mean difference before and after the intervention.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
. Funnel plot of studies entered into the meta-analysis using the standardized mean difference after the intervention.
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Meta-regression correlation between sample size and studies included in a meta-analysis using standard mean difference index before the intervention.
Fig. 7
Fig. 7
Meta-regression correlation between sample size and studies included in a meta-analysis using standard mean difference index after the intervention.
Fig. 8
Fig. 8
Meta-regression correlation between the study year and the studies included in the meta-analysis using the standard mean difference index before the intervention.
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
Meta-regression correlation between the study year and the studies included in the meta-analysis using the standard mean difference index before and after the intervention.
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