Knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antenatal exercises among pregnant mothers attending De Soyza Maternity Hospital Colombo

Abstract

Introduction: Antenatal exercises provide many health benefits not only to pregnant mothers but also to the fetuses. Adequate knowledge among pregnant mothers is vital to promote practicing of it. The aim of this study was to describe the knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding antenatal exercises and factors associated with them among pregnant women attending De Soyza Maternity Hospital (DMH) Colombo. Methods:A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 110 pregnant mothers with a period of amenorrhoea of 20 weeks or more using an interviewer-administered questionnaire.Results: Knowledge regarding antenatal exercises was 'poor' among a majority (72.7%, n=80). Only 6.4% (n=7) and 5.5% (n=6) knew the importance of pelvic floor strengthening exercises and its technique, respectively. Most had somewhat favourable (49.1%, n=54) and favourable (35.5%, n=39) attitudes towards antenatal exercises while overall practices were 'poor' with a majority not exercising (86.4%, n=95). The sources of information were written media (49.1%, n =54) and electronic media (48.2%, n=53). Doing a job during pregnancy was significantly associated with possessing a 'Good/Excellent' level of knowledge (p=0.02) while living in a district other than Colombo was also associated significantly with a 'Good/ Excellent' level of knowledge (p=0.039) and a 'Good' level of practice (p=0.042). Average family monthly income of > Rs. 25000 was associated with a level of 'Favorable' attitude (p=0.004). Conclusion:Knowledge and practices regarding antenatal exercises among pregnant women attending DMH were suboptimal while their attitudes were mostly favourable. Measures should be taken to improve knowledge and practices of antenatal exercises during pregnancy.

Knowledge and Attitude of Pregnant Women towards Antenatal Exercise in Erbil City

“…These results are consistent with a study conducted by Khatri et al (2014), mentioned that most of the study sample they can attend an antenatal education program once weekly for half an hour [22]. Regarding the association between the age of pregnant women and overall knowledge related to exercise during pregnancy was not statistically significant, these results are consistent with findings of other studies, which showed that no statistically significant association between age of pregnant women's and overall knowledge [15,16,17]. There was a significant relationship between the level of education and pregnant women's overall exercises knowledge during pregnancy this results is agree with the findings of Loveness et al (in 2014), which reported that were significant associations between adequate knowledge of physical exercise during pregnancy and their education level [21] and also is in agreement with study conducted by Atiya & Muhammad in 2014 , who showed that level of knowledge about exercise increase with increasing level of education [22]…”

“…(3) Muhammad (2014) reported that 81.2% of the study sample had inadequate knowledge regarding the effect of exercise during pregnancy [17] and Wijesiriwardana & Gunawardena (2015) showed the majority of their study sample had poor knowledge concerning antenatal exercise [16]. pregnant women that involved in this study had poor knowledge about types of antenatal exercises such as walking, leg raising, pelvic floor, and yoga, these results are inconsistent with a study carried out by Chidozie et al (2014), reported that most of the women had knowledge of pelvic floor exercise, muscle strengthening exercise, and relaxation and breathing exercise as types of antenatal exercises [19].…”

“…Likewise, there is a low level of awareness about exercise during pregnancy. Many previous studies indicated that information about antenatal exercise is inadequate among pregnant women [14,15,16,17]. This preliminary study assessed the pregnant women's knowledge and attitude regarding exercise during pregnancy.…”

Knowledge and Attitude of Pregnant Women Regarding Antenatal Exercises

“…Though, surveys have exhibited that majority of pregnant females engage less in regularly exercise [18] and that less than 20% accept upto-date exercise recommendations [19]. Several authors have explored the attitude and approaches of females regarding the routine of bodily activity during pregnancy as well as the causes that influence their conduct concerning exercise [20][21]. Therefore, the current study was performed to appraise the awareness and attitude about exercise during pregnancy among antenatal mothers…”

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Kegel Exercise among Postnatal Women, in Al Madinah Al Munawarah, Saudi Arabia

“…However, the appropriate knowledge and attitude regarding kegel exercises during the postpartum period among mothers, have been shown to be vital in improving the practice, as well as an insight into appropriate attitude, in the context of socio-cultural, educational and economic background of the mothers is essential in providing an educational intervention to promote adherence to Kegel exercises (Wijesiriwardana &Gunawardena, 2016).Moreover, recognizing the factors that affect behaviours and beliefs would enhance a change in attitude. Therefore, identifying the knowledge and attitude about exercise among women may help to determine the women adherence to kegel exercise during pre and postnatal period (Mbada, 2014).…”