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. 2023 Mar;23(1):59-71.
doi: 10.4314/ahs.v23i1.8.

Evaluation of the association between fear of COVID-19 and pregnancy distress

Rojjin Mamuk  1 , Şahide Akbulut  2 , Ayfer Erdoğan  3
Affiliations

Evaluation of the association between fear of COVID-19 and pregnancy distress

Rojjin Mamuk et al. Afr Health Sci. 2023 Mar.

Abstract

Background: Mental health problems experienced during pregnancy negatively affect both maternal and fetal wellbeing.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between fear of COVID-19 and pregnancy distress in healthy pregnant women living in Turkey.

Methods: A descriptive, relational/cross-sectional study was conducted by interviewing 363 pregnant women in person. Data were collected using a personal information form, the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), and the Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale (TPDS).

Results: The mean FCV-19S score was 19.03±5.65 and the mean TPDS score was 19.97±7.97. According to the TPDS cut-off score, 19.0% of the participants were at risk of pregnancy distress. There was a significant positive correlation between FCV-19S and TPDS scores (r = 0.263, p<0.05). According to the regression analysis, age (β= -0.217), years of education (β= -0.272), and number of births (β= 0.502) were associated with fear of COVID-19, and fear of COVID-19 was associated with TPDS scores (β= 0.369) (p<0.05).

Conclusion: The pregnant women in this study had moderate fear of COVID-19. Compared to the literature data, the prevalence of pregnancy distress was slightly higher than pre-COVID-19 reports but quite low compared to other studies conducted during the pandemic.

Keywords: COVID-19; distress; fear; pregnancy; pregnant women.

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