Abstract
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused general anxiety worldwide. Pregnant women are at a much higher risk of developing the infection due to multiple changes that occur in the body during this period. The consequences of the disease can be dramatic not only for the expectant mothers, but also for their unborn children. SARS-CoV-2 infection is generally known to cause serious concerns about future health and life. The data on the severity of COVID-19 pandemic-related anxiety in pregnant women are insufficient. The aim of the study was to assess the level of COVID-19-related anxiety among pregnant women in Poland. Materials and Methods: The study included 173 pregnant women who volunteered for the research. The research was conducted by means of an online diagnostic survey containing an original questionnaire and the following standardized tools: State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI), and General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7). Results: Women hospitalised during pregnancy differed statistically significantly in terms of STAI-X1 scores. Primiparas obtained statistically significantly higher SHAI scores than multiparas. Women with higher education had higher SHAI scores. In the GAD-7 scale, 13.3% of respondents obtained a score suggesting a suspected generalised anxiety disorder. Conclusions: Pregnant women are concerned about both developing COVID-19 and the consequences of infection for themselves and their unborn children. The study demonstrated anxiety of varying severity (depending on the tool used). Hospital stay during pregnancy is an additional stressor in expectant women. Further studies are needed to assess the level of COVID-19-related anxiety to assess this phenomenon in Poland in more detail.
Highlights
The current COVID-19 pandemic is considered to be an example of a natural disaster with such a heavy global health burden, from which more than 236 million people worldwide are suffering and almost 5 million people have died [1]
A detailed analysis of General Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) results showed that the total score indicated anxiety symptoms of varying severity in 71% of respondents
Our study showed that women who had COVID-19 had lower levels of fear of infection with the SARS-CoV-2 than pregnant women who had not contracted the disease so far
Summary
The current COVID-19 pandemic is considered to be an example of a natural disaster with such a heavy global health burden, from which more than 236 million people worldwide are suffering and almost 5 million people have died [1]. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused panic and mental health problems around the world [3]. Frequent preventive measures (e.g., washing hands, masking, social distancing, and isolation) during a pandemic obsess people, which increases the risk of psychological damage [4]. The pandemic has caused changes in everyday life, which has increased the risk of anxiety and depression [5]. Pregnant women have limited access to primary health care services [7]. Additional factors affecting their mental health are concerns about exposure to COVID-19 and concerns about COVID-19 vaccinations [8]. Fear of COVID-19, anxiety, and depression were the most common mental disorders among pregnant women [11,12]
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