Objective: Pregnancy and postpartum are stages in a woman's life associated to important psychological and physiological changes that can affect her sexual behaviour. In addition, some sociodemographic and obstetric factors can also alter the sexual response. The aim of this study is to evaluate the modifications in sexual behaviour before, during and after pregnancy in a group of Spanish pregnant women and the factors that may be associated. Materials and methods: A prospective study was performed on 111 healthy pregnant women who completed a questionnaire about their sexual habits (including coital and orgasm frequency, satisfaction and pain during intercourse) prior to gestation, at 20, 30 and 38 weeks, and at three and six months postpartum. Data regarding sociodemographic variables (maternal age, marital status and parental educational level) and obstetric variables (parity) were also included. Results: The frequency of sexual activity declined progressively during pregnancy compared with pre-pregnancy levels, with a partial recovery six months after childbirth (p < 0.001). Orgasm frequency (p < 0.006), satisfaction (p < 0.001) and dyspareunia (p < 0.016) also changed, but these declined especially in the last weeks before delivery. Overall, women 30 years or younger, nulliparous, unmarried and women with primary education showed better results in the variables of sexuality while father's education level had little effect. Conclusion: A deep understanding of the changes in sexuality during pregnancy and postpartum is needed to provide couples with information about the normal aspects of their sexuality and to detect sexual dysfunction in these periods. Modificaciones en el comportamiento sexual durante el embarazo y los factores relacionados con el postparto RESUMENObjetivo: El embarazo y el postparto son etapas en la vida de la mujer asociadas con importantes cambios psicológicos y fisiológicos que pueden afectar su comportamiento sexual. Además, algunos factores sociodemográficas y obstétricos también pueden alterar la respuesta sexual. El objetivo de este estudio es evaluar las modificaciones en el comportamiento sexual From:
Introduction: Postpartum depression is an important health problem because of its negative impact on the family. The objective of this study was to ascertain the risk of depression in new mothers who had recently given birth in public university hospitals in Granada and to identify the factors that most contributed to the onset of postpartum depression. Materials and method:A descriptive study was made of a sample population of 370 new mothers, 18-46 years of age, who had given birth from January to May 2013. The subjects filled out the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), a 10-item self-report scale. The women were also given a questionnaire that elicited sociodemographic and obstetric data. The EPDS cut-off score used was 10/11. Results:The average EPDS score obtained was 6.12 with an interval of 0-25. Our results showed that 15.13% of the women in the study had scores equal of 11 or higher. Risk of postpartum depression had a statistically significant correlation with weeks of pregnancy (p=0.031), onset of labour (p=0.000), type of delivery (p=0.029), and reasons for not having epidural anaesthesia (p=0.038). It also had a significant positive correlation with the subject's obstetric history. Conclusions:The majority of the women in the sample population had scores that did not exceed the risk threshold score identified in the study. As reflected in our results, the risk factors for postpartum depression were onset of labour, type of delivery, reasons for not having epidural anaesthesia, and parity.
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