introduction: from maturity to menopause, women are worried about pregnancy. abstinence from sex or use of pregnancy prevention methods are choices for them. as abstinence is impossible, the only remaining choice is use of pregnancy prevention methods. effective control of pregnancy is really essential for the health of mother and infant and also control of unplanned increase in population. reg...

PURPOSE The objectives of this study were to identify the prevalence and rationales of traditional Chinese pregnancy restrictions and to investigate the relationship between pregnancy restriction, health-related quality of life, and perceived stress level at a two-stage design. METHODS Stage I consisted of exploring the traditional Chinese pregnancy restrictions and their underlying beliefs b...

A study was conducted on a sample of pregnant women. The study had two aims: to develop a method of measuring social expectations (norms) and to find out how far women conform in their behaviour to these norms. The areas of behaviour were smoking, exercise, diet, alcohol, and medication. Pregnancy was found to be appropriate for this study because of the high degree of formalisation that this s...

Background Pregnancy causes physiological changes to a woman's body that makes it a special circumstance for oral care. Proper oral care is extremely important for not only the pregnant woman, but also the developing fetus, and this also marks an important period where a woman is more susceptible to learning positive health behaviors for themselves and their future child. Therefore, it is impor...

Maternal health status before pregnancy is a decisive factor for pregnancy outcomes and for risk for maternal and infant complications. Still, maternity care does not start until the pregnancy is established and in most low-income settings not until more than half of the pregnancy has passed, which often is too late to impact outcomes. In Western societies preconception care (PCC) is widely rec...

Oral health care in pregnancy is often avoided and misunderstood by physicians, dentists, and patients. Evidence-based practice guidelines are still being developed. Research suggests that some prenatal oral conditions may have adverse consequences for the child. Periodontitis is associated with preterm birth and low birth weight, and high levels of cariogenic bacteria in mothers can lead to in...

In the Andean region of Latin America over one million adolescent girls get pregnant every year. Adolescent pregnancy (AP) has been associated with adverse health and social outcomes, but it has also been favorably viewed as a pathway to adulthood. AP can also be conceptualized as a marker of inequity, since it disproportionately affects girls from the poorest households and those who have not ...

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the psychological state of women and its associated factors in the third trimester of pregnancy and at eight weeks postpartum and to explore the changes in psychological state between these two time points. Material and Methods: This survey study was carried out on 358 pregnant women visiting urban health centers in Shahroud, northeast Iran, ...

OBJECTIVE This study estimated the prevalence of diagnosed depression and treatment among women before, during, and after pregnancies ending in live births. METHOD A previously validated algorithm identified health plan members with at least one pregnancy between Jan. 1, 1998, and Dec. 31, 2001. Women with a pregnancy ending in one or more live births and continuously enrolled from 39 weeks b...