Associations Among Postpartum Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms and COVID-19 Pandemic-Related Stressors.
Clayton J Shuman, Mikayla E Morgan, Neha Pareddy and 4 others
PMID 36129832WHAT IT FOUND
Nearly all postpartum persons who gave birth during the early pandemic reported at least one birth-related PTSD symptom.
Pandemic exposure was linked to reliving symptoms, worry to unexpected birth memories, and quarantine was not linked.
Key findings
01After listwise deletion, 670 postpartum persons were analyzed; 98.9% reported at least one BirthMARQ symptom, and the mean symptom count was 8.3 of 21.
02COVID-19 exposure was associated with more intrusion symptoms, especially reliving symptoms, compared with no exposure.
03Worry about COVID-19 infection was associated with more recall symptoms, while postpartum quarantine was not associated with overall, mood and cognition, intrusion, or domain symptom counts.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample was a convenience sample and was mostly white and married, so findings may not apply to other postpartum populations. The survey measured self-reported symptoms, not a clinical PTSD diagnosis. The design was cross-sectional, so associations cannot show that pandemic stressors caused symptoms. Data were collected only during the first wave of the pandemic in the United States. The study did not measure other possible causes of birth trauma, such as birth complications, prior mental health history, or reasons for NICU admission.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that nearly all postpartum persons have PTSD or that pandemic stressors caused symptoms. The BirthMARQ counted symptoms, and the survey measured associations at a single time point.