OBSTETRIC COMPLICATIONS, BODY IMAGE AND PERCEPTIONS OF THE INTRAPARTAL EXPERIENCE OF OBESE AND NON-OBESE POSTPARTUM WOMEN.
Contributors: University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Published: 1987
Number of pages: 103
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: Obesity continues to be a major health problem. The purpose of this descriptive study was to ascertain whether differences existed between obese and non-obese postpartum women in relation to obstetric complications, body image and perceptions of labor. Sixty women met the criteria for inclusion in the study, however completed data were obtained for 57 subjects. Overall sample criteria included: 37 to 42 weeks gestation, vaginal delivery, normal newborn, single pregnancy, maternal age between 18 and 40 years, with no uncorrected perceptual impairment.

Data were collected in a large teaching hospital in the Southeast United States. Data collection tools included: Harpenden skinfold calipers, the Attitude to Body Image Scale (ABIS), the Perception of Birth Inventory (POB), a topographic device consisting of concentric circles increasing in diameter from 11 to 52 inches, and a demographic data form. Within 48 hours of delivery each potential subject was approached in her room by the investigator, the study was briefly explained and the subject was invited to participate. Upon receipt of verbal consent, the subject completed the ABIS and POB questionnaires. The investigator obtained obstetric and demographic data from the subject's chart while the questionnaires were being completed. Following completion of the questionnaire, body frame was determined, the subject was asked to stand in the middle of the topographic device and both the subject's perception of space occupied and actual space occupied were obtained. Skinfold measurements were obtained, followed by weight and height measurements. Total data collection time was approximately 20 minutes per subject.

Data were analyzed by means of multiple regression. Although only 7 subjects experienced complications in the form of pregnancy-induced hypertension, obesity was found to be a significant predictor of that complication. However, the limited number of subjects precluded any generalization. The obese women viewed their bodies more negatively than their thinner counterparts. There were no differences in perceptions of the labor experience between groups. Conclusions were: as obesity measurements increased, the likelihood of pregnancy-induced hypertension increased, and body image became more negative; perceptions of the intrapartal experience were not altered by obesity. Recommendations included examining the relationship between type of delivery and complications in obese women, between parity and body image in obese and non-obese women, and between body image and race in obese and non-obese postpartum women.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 48-08, Section: B, page: 2265.

Thesis (D.S.N.)--UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM, 1987.

School code: 0005.