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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Geburtshilfe Frauenheilkd 2022; 82(11): 1265-1273
DOI: 10.1055/a-1909-0451
GebFra Science
Original Article

COVID-19 and Perinatal Stress Experience – a Study Conducted as Part of the COVGEN Initiative

Article in several languages: English | deutsch
Dominik Kentschke
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
,
Ilena Bauer
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
,
Julia Moser
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
,
Franziska Schleger
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
,
Marlene Hahn
2   Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
,
Jan Pauluschke-Fröhlich
2   Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
,
Peter Jakubowski
2   Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
,
Harald Abele
2   Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
,
Hubert Preissl
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
3   Department of Internal Medicine IV, Division of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Nephrology, University Hospital of Eberhard-Karls-University Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
,
Julia Hartkopf 
1   Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of the Helmholtz Center Munich, University of Tübingen/fMEG Center; German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany
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Abstract

Introduction During the COVID-19 pandemic, stress and anxiety in the population increased due to concerns about people’s own health and that of their relatives, as well as changes in everyday life due to measures taken to reduce the infection rate. Pregnant women are particularly stressed. The present study examines how the COVID-19 pandemic affects the stress experience and mental health of pregnant women and mothers of newborns and how care could be optimized.

Methods As part of the international COVGEN initiative (https://www.covgen.org) to investigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the peripartum period, pregnant and postpartum women were asked about their experience with stress using the COPE-IS (Coronavirus Perinatal Experiences – Impact Survey) questionnaire developed for this purpose and translated from the English. In addition, demographic data, pre-existing diseases, pregnancy complications and the care situation were recorded. The questionnaire was either administered as hardcopy to inpatients at the Department of Women’s Health, University Hospital Tübingen, Germany, or online. All pregnant women and mothers who were pregnant or had given birth after the official start of the COVID-19 pandemic (11 March 2020) were eligible to participate.

Results Complete data sets of n = 156 pregnant women and n = 221 postpartum women were available for evaluation. The general stress level assessed with the COPE-IS was significantly increased by the COVID-19 pandemic in both, pregnant and postpartum women, with pre-existing conditions such as respiratory diseases and pregnancy-related diseases like gestational diabetes adding to the stress. The subjectively perceived quality of care/support during pregnancy also influenced the stress level.

Conclusions Fears of a COVID-19 infection and changes in preventive and aftercare services were a burden for the women surveyed. Intensified care during pregnancy and puerperium could help to stabilize the mental situation and reduce stress.

Keywords

COVID-19 pandemic - corona - pregnancy - postpartum - stress

Supporting information



Publication History

Received: 22 March 2022

Accepted after revision: 25 July 2022

Article published online:
03 November 2022

© 2022. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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