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Does a traumatic birth experience have an impact on future reproduction?
Karin Gottvall1, Ulla Waldenström
1Department of Nursing, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
Objective:
To investigate whether women's experiences of their first birth affects future reproduction.
Design:
Prospective cohort study.
Setting:
South Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
Population:
Six hundred and seventeen women who gave birth to their first child 1989-1992.
Methods:
A global measure of women's experiences of their first birth, assessed two months postpartum, was available from a birth centre trial, together with information on a range of background variables. This information was linked to the Swedish Medical Birth Register, which included information on the number of subsequent births during the following 8-10 years.
Main Outcome Measures:
Number of births (0 or > or =1) following the first birth.
Results:
Women with a negative experience of their first birth had fewer subsequent children and a longer interval to the second baby (RR 1.7, 95% CI 1.3-2.3). Being 35 years and older (RR 2.6, 95% CI 1.6-3.7), or single (RR 2.6, 95% CI 1.7-3.9) was also associated with subsequent infertility.
Conclusion:
A negative birth experience was associated with subsequent infertility, and women's experiences should therefore be considered seriously in the provision of maternity care.
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