Abstract
Background During pregnancy, a number of changes affecting venous blood flow occur in the circulatory system, such as reduced vein wall tension or increased exposure to collagen fibers. These factors may cause blood stagnation, swelling of the legs, or endothelial damage and consequently lead to development of venous disease. Objectives The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of special footwear designed to improve blood circulation in the feet on venous blood flow changes observed during advancing phases of pregnancy. Methods Thirty healthy pregnant women participated in this study at 25, 30, and 35 weeks of gestation. Participants were allocated at random to an experimental group (n = 15) which was provided with the special footwear, or a control group (n = 15). At each data collection session, Doppler measurements of peak systolic blood flow velocity and cross-sectional area of the right popliteal vein were performed using a MySonoU6 ultrasound machine with a linear transducer (Samsung Medison). The differences were compared using Cohen’s d test to calculate effect size. Results With advancing phases of pregnancy, peak systolic velocity in the popliteal vein decreased significantly in the control group, whereas it increased significantly in the experimental group. No significant change in cross-sectional area was observed in any of the groups. Conclusions Findings in the experimental group demonstrated that wearing the footwear tested may prevent venous blood velocity from reducing during advanced phases of pregnancy. Nevertheless, there is a need for further investigation of the beneficial effect on venous flow of the footwear tested and its application.
Highlights
Changes in blood flow during pregnancy are likely to play a role in development of venous insufficiency and thromboembolic events.[1,2] Venous insufficiency and varicose disease were observed in 43% and 72.7% of pregnant women, respectively
These data show that while there was a reduction in blood flow velocity in the control group, peak systolic velocity (PSV) increased in the experimental group during advanced phases of pregnancy
The effect size comparison between the control and experimental group shows that peak systolic velocity in the experimental group was significantly slower at the first measurement, before the special footwear had been worn
Summary
Changes in blood flow during pregnancy are likely to play a role in development of venous insufficiency and thromboembolic events.[1,2] Venous insufficiency and varicose disease were observed in 43% and 72.7% of pregnant women, respectively. Vein dilatation and exposure to collagen fibers can cause endothelial damage and lead to blood clot formation.[1,5,8] A previous study shows that blood flow velocity is statistically lower in pregnant women with venous insufficiency. A number of changes affecting venous blood flow occur in the circulatory system, such as reduced vein wall tension or increased exposure to collagen fibers. These factors may cause blood stagnation, swelling of the legs, or endothelial damage and lead to development of venous disease. Conclusions: Findings in the experimental group demonstrated that wearing the footwear tested may prevent venous blood velocity from reducing during advanced phases of pregnancy.
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