Profiling Postpartum Recovery After Scheduled Cesarean Delivery With Neuraxial Anesthesia: A Longitudinal Cohort...

Area of Science:

• Obstetrics and Gynecology
• Maternal Health
• Postpartum Recovery Research

Background:

• Cesarean delivery significantly impacts maternal health-related quality of life.
• Understanding normal postpartum recovery profiles after cesarean delivery is crucial.
• Limited data exists on longitudinal recovery trajectories following scheduled cesarean births.

Purpose of the Study:

• To longitudinally evaluate global health visual analog scale (GHVAS) scores up to 12 weeks after scheduled cesarean delivery.
• To identify the time point at which GHVAS scores plateau post-cesarean.
• To assess postpartum recovery domains using validated patient-reported outcome measures (ObsQoR-10, EQ-5D).

Main Methods:

• Prospective, longitudinal study of healthy women undergoing scheduled cesarean delivery.
• Utilized validated patient-reported outcome measures including GHVAS, ObsQoR-10, and EQ-5D.
• Collected survey data at baseline, 24/48 hours postpartum, and at 1, 3, 6, and 12 weeks postpartum.

Main Results:

• GHVAS scores improved significantly, plateauing by 3 weeks postpartum (P < .001).
• Obstetric Quality of Recovery (ObsQoR-10) scores showed improvement by 1 week postpartum (P = .003).
• EuroQol 5-level 5-dimensional questionnaire (EQ-5D) scores improved by 6 weeks, particularly in usual activities and pain/discomfort (P = .001).

Conclusions:

• Global health visual analog scale (GHVAS) scores stabilize by 3 weeks following scheduled cesarean delivery.
• Findings provide valuable insights into expected postpartum recovery timelines.
• This data can inform patients about the typical recovery trajectory up to 12 weeks postpartum.