Postpartum symptoms after antepartum bed rest

To determine the type and frequency of postpartum symptoms during recovery from antepartum bed rest treatment across 6 weeks postpartum.

Longitudinal repeated measures study.

Three perinatal tertiary care hospitals in two cities in the Midwest.

One hundred six postpartum women who had a singleton high-risk pregnancy and were treated with antepartum bed rest.

A Postpartum Symptom Checklist assessed physiologic and psychological symptoms.

Women reported 12.5 symptoms at 2 days postpartum, but symptoms rapidly declined at 1 week. Ninety-three percent reported a mean of 6.6 symptoms at 6 weeks postpartum. Symptoms that continued to be reported at 6 weeks by at least 40% of women were fatigue, mood changes, tenseness, difficulty concentrating, back muscle soreness, dry skin, and headache. Women who had a cesarean delivery reported significantly more symptoms than those who had a vaginal delivery (p = .006). Length of maternal bed rest was significantly correlated with the number of symptoms at postpartum weeks 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6.

Postpartum symptoms decreased across time but reveal an underlying morbidity that is not resolved by 6 weeks postpartum.