QUALITY OF LIFE, CARDIOVASCULAR INDICES AND STRESS AMONG PREGNANT WOMEN ATTENDING ANTENATAL CLINIC IN FMC OWO, ONDO STATE

Abstract

Background: The period of pregnancy is a critical period in a woman’s life that involves not only biological/physiological but psychological and social changes. These changes can affect quality of life of a pregnant woman, maternal and infant health hence the need to be monitored and kept under control.

Aim: To determine the correlation between Quality of life, selected Cardiovascular indices and Stress among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Federal Medical Centre, Owo.

Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 95 pregnant women attending antenatal clinic. Data was obtained using the Perceived Stress Scale and World Health Organization Quality of Life-Bref. Participants’ blood pressure and pulse rate were measured using appropriate instrument. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistic and Inferential statistics of spearman rho correlation of coefficient and Kruskal Wallis analysis of variance with mean rank. Alpha level was set at p= 0.05.

Results: A significant negative correlation was observed between pulse rate and perceived stress level (r = -0.195, p = <0.05); between physical domain of the WHOQoL-Bref and perceived stress level (r = -0.207, p = <0.05). No significant difference was found for perceived stress among the different categories of gestational age of respondents. Also there was no significant difference in all the domains of quality of life and overall quality of life among the different categories of gestational age of respondents (p>0.05).

Conclusion: Stress is negatively correlated with pulse rate of pregnant women while Physical health negatively correlated with perceived stress. Stress and quality of life were not significantly different throughout the different stages of pregnancy.