Development and validation of the Prenatal Diagnostic Procedures Anxiety Scale

Abstract

As there are currently no specific measures of anxiety due to prenatal diagnostic procedures, the aim of the study was to develop and validate a new measure called the Prenatal Diagnostic Procedure Anxiety Scale (PDPAS). Seventy-four pregnant women scheduled for amniocentesis and ultrasound completed the PDPAS, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, and the Perceived Stress Scale before undergoing the diagnostic procedure. Reliability, concurrent validity, factor structure, scale sensitivity, and specificity were analyzed. Differences between amniocentesis and ultrasound groups in the PDPAS score were analyzed with a t-test. The final scale comprised 11 items and two subscales measuring 'fear of procedure' and 'fear of abnormal result'. Concurrent validity analysis showed that the PDPAS is an independent measure of anxiety. At a cut-off score of >11, sensitivity was 75.0% and specificity was 72.01% with moderate accuracy. Fear of procedure was higher in the amniocentesis group, whereas fear of abnormal result was equally present in both amniocentesis and ultrasound groups. The PDPAS has good internal consistency and concurrent validity with satisfactory psychometric characteristics. As a short measure of situation-specific anxiety, it can be used as a screening tool in prenatal clinical settings.