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Physical Exercise and Economic Burden Associated with Anxiety Symptoms in Pregnant Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic

30 Pages Posted: 22 Mar 2022

See all articles by Shucheng Hu

Shucheng Hu

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Chunhui Hu

Hubei University of Medicine - Center of Health Administration and Development Studies

Ping Xu

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Lu Chen

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management

Jiaqi Wang

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management

Jun Sun

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management

Shicong Shou

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management

Jie Deng

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology

Peng Duan

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology

More...

Abstract

Background: COVID-19 with high infectivity and high concealment has been widely spread around the world. This major public health event has caused anxiety among the public, including pregnant women. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of anxiety symptoms in pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic and its influencing factors.

Methods: Using an ongoing prospective pregnancy registry, we performed a single center cross-sectional analysis to investigate the overall prevalence of anxiety symptoms among pregnant women during the COVID-19 pandemic. Online questionnaires were used to collect information including sociodemographic data, physical activity and economic situations. The Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) was used to assess anxiety symptoms. The univariate regression analysis was performed to detect factors potentially influencing anxiety symptoms among pregnant women. The multivariate regression analysis was also conducted to analyze the association of physical exercise and economic burden with anxiety symptoms by adjusting for other variables.

Results: A total of 1,517 pregnant women entered the analysis. The study reported that 31.64% of the respondents had anxiety symptoms. Those with bank loans were at higher odds of suffering from anxiety symptoms compared to those without bank loans [(adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.494, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.181~1.889]. Those who took 2,000~5,000 steps/day (aOR 0.825, 95% CI 0.603~0.875) and >5,000 steps/day (aOR 0.924, 95% CI 0.439~0.945) were at lower odds of suffering from anxiety symptoms compared to those who took <500 steps/day. Similarly, the adjusted odds ratios for anxiety symptoms was 0.750 (95% CI 0.663~0.790) and 0.800 (95% CI 0.226~0.889) lower in participants with exercise frequencies of 4-6, and ≥7 times/week, compared to those with a frequency of <2 times/week.

Conclusions: Three in ten pregnant women experienced anxiety symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic, and anxiety symptoms showed association with bank loans and physical exercise. To prevent anxiety of pregnant women, the promotion of healthy lifestyles, improvement of mental health services, and expansion of social support should be implemented during epidemics. In parallel, the integration of psycho-educational interventions with mental health services among public health centers is required to minimize anxiety symptoms in pregnancy women.

Funding Information: This work was supported by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China (81901567), the Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (2018CFB111), the Cultivating Project for Young Scholar at Hubei University of Medicine (2017QDJZR07), the Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Provincial Department of Education (Q20202105) and Key Research Center for Humanities and Socia1 Sciences in Hubei Province (Hubei University of Medicine) (2019ZD001).


Declaration of Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethics Approval Statement: The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Xiangyang No.1 People's Hospital, Xiangyang, China (approval number: 2019GCP032). Electronic consent was obtained from each study participant before starting the questionnaire. All responses were recorded anonymously and no identifying information was collected.

Keywords: COVID-19, Anxiety symptom, Pregnancy women, Physical exercise, Economic burden

Suggested Citation

Hu, Shucheng and Hu, Chunhui and Xu, Ping and Chen, Lu and Wang, Jiaqi and Sun, Jun and Shou, Shicong and Deng, Jie and Duan, Peng, Physical Exercise and Economic Burden Associated with Anxiety Symptoms in Pregnant Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4063804 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4063804

Shucheng Hu (Contact Author)

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology ( email )

China

Chunhui Hu

Hubei University of Medicine - Center of Health Administration and Development Studies ( email )

Shiyan, 442000
China

Ping Xu

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology ( email )

China

Lu Chen

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management ( email )

Shiyan
China

Jiaqi Wang

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management ( email )

Shiyan
China

Jun Sun

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management ( email )

Shiyan
China

Shicong Shou

Hubei University of Medicine - School of Public Health and Management ( email )

Shiyan
China

Jie Deng

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology ( email )

China

Peng Duan

Hubei University of Medicine - Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology ( email )

China

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