Department of Nursing, Asia University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Department of Nursing, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan.
West J Nurs Res. 2024 Aug;46(8):563-570. doi: 10.1177/01939459241257869. Epub 2024 Jun 2.
The postpartum period is a critical phase in which postpartum women experience dynamic changes in their physiology, psychology, and family status.
This study investigated the changes in women's quality of life (QoL) during the first, third, and sixth months of the postpartum period and their associated factors.
A single-group repeated-measure design was used to collect data from 282 postpartum women recruited from a regional hospital in Taiwan. We used the brief World Health Organization Quality of Life scale, Social Support Scale, and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale to assess postpartum women's quality of life, social support, and postpartum depressive symptoms, respectively. The data were analyzed using trajectory analysis and generalized estimating equations.
The trajectory analysis indicated that postpartum women could be categorized into low, medium, and high QoL groups. Although the medium and high QoL groups maintained stable QoL levels, the low QoL group experienced a linear decrease in QoL over time. Moreover, the determinants of postpartum women's QoL were immigrant status, employment status, family type, social support, and postpartum depression.
Health care providers should assess these determinants of postpartum QoL in perinatal women to identify those at risk of low postpartum quality of life. Early assessment and intervention by health care providers could significantly improve the health status of women after childbirth.
产后阶段是女性在生理、心理和家庭地位方面经历动态变化的关键时期。
本研究旨在探讨产后女性在产后第 1、3 和 6 个月期间生活质量（QoL）的变化及其相关因素。
采用单组重复测量设计，从台湾一家地区医院招募了 282 名产后女性。我们使用简短的世界卫生组织生活质量量表、社会支持量表和爱丁堡产后抑郁量表分别评估产后女性的生活质量、社会支持和产后抑郁症状。使用轨迹分析和广义估计方程对数据进行分析。
轨迹分析表明，产后女性可分为低、中、高 QoL 组。虽然中、高 QoL 组保持稳定的 QoL 水平，但低 QoL 组的 QoL 水平随时间呈线性下降。此外，移民身份、就业状况、家庭类型、社会支持和产后抑郁是影响产后女性 QoL 的决定因素。
医疗保健提供者应评估这些决定产后 QoL 的因素，以确定那些生活质量低的产妇。医疗保健提供者的早期评估和干预可以显著改善产妇产后的健康状况。
