Health-related quality of life five years after birth of the first child

Abstract

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to describe the overall health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in women five years after the birth of their first child as well as the HRQoL in relation to mode of delivery. Methods545 first-time pregnant women, drawn from a hospital situated in Sweden, consented to be included in a cohort. Five years after the birth of the first child, 372 (68%) women agreed to participate in a follow-up study. HRQoL was measured using the Swedish Health-Related Quality of Life Survey (SWED-QUAL) questionnaire. Socio-demographic background and variables related to pregnancy and childbirth were collected using a self-report questionnaire. ResultsOverall, the HRQoL was perceived to be good. Suboptimal scores were obtained for the three variables: Sleeping problems, Emotional well-being – negative affect and Family functioning – sexual functioning. Women having a vaginal birth, an instrumental vaginal birth or women who underwent caesarean section on maternal request were more likely to report better perceived HRQoL than women who had undergone an emergency caesarean section or caesarean section due to medical indication. ConclusionThis study demonstrates that the overall HRQoL of the women in the cohort was reported as good. Mode of delivery was associated with differences in HRQoL five years after birth of the first child. Our result suggests that some differences in perceived HRQoL persist in the long term.