Does fear of childbirth in nulliparous women affect fetal outcomes?


DEMİR Ö., Ozbay G., Ozalp M., ŞAL H., Kayikci G. O., Koc E. A., ...Daha Fazla

REVISTA DA ASSOCIACAO MEDICA BRASILEIRA, cilt.71, sa.11, 2025 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 71 Sayı: 11
  • Basım Tarihi: 2025
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1590/1806-9282.20251005
  • Dergi Adı: REVISTA DA ASSOCIACAO MEDICA BRASILEIRA
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, EMBASE, MEDLINE
  • Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

OBJECTIVE: In this study, an investigation was undertaken to determine whether the well-being of the fetus is affected in pregnant women who have a severe fear of childbirth. METHODS: Participantswere nulliparous pregnantwomen at 37weeks of gestation. The Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire-Aquestionnaire, validated for the Turkish population,was used to assessthe degree of fear of childbirth of the study subjects. Caseswhere labor began spontaneously and resulted in a vaginal delivery were included in the study. A total of 44 patients were investigated during the study period. The cases were divided into two groups according to the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire-A scores. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences between the groups regarding fetal cord blood gas parameters and Apgar scores at the first and fifth minutes. Fear of childbirth in nulliparous cases did not affect the fetal cord blood gas parameters or Apgar scores. It was observed that the duration of the second stage of labor was statistically significantly longer in women with severe fear of birth (p=0.036). CONCLUSION: As a result, tocophobia can prolong the duration of the second stage of labor, does not affectfetal oxygenation, and does not change fetal cord blood gas parameters and Apgar scores. It is aimed to verifythis result with large-scale studies and to encourage prospective studies.