The Effect of an Exercise Program in Reducing the Severity of Postpartum Depression in Women

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Depression, Postpartum
• Interventions: Behavioral: Exercises

• Registration Number: NCT04043533
• Lead Sponsor: Didem Kucukkelepce

Brief Summary

Aim: This study aims to identify the effectiveness of an exercise program in reducing the severity of postnatal depression in women who had a spontaneous vaginal delivery.

Methods: This randomized control trial was conducted with 65 postpartum women residing in a city located in the south-eastern Turkey. In the first postpartum month, following random assignment of subjects, the experimental group (n=40) performed exercises for four weeks, and the control group (n=40) received standard cares. The participating women were administered the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale.

Detailed Description

Postpartum depression is characterized by irritability, guilt, burnout, anxiety, sleep disorders, and somatic symptoms that could have negative effects on the mother, baby, and family.

In a meta-analysis study including 219 prevalence studies from 56 countries that investigated different phases of postpartum using various data collection tools, Hahn-Holbrook et al. (2018) found the depression prevalence at the global level as 17.7% (Hahn-Holbrook, 2018). In Turkey, 23.8% of women in the postpartum period were reported to be suffering from postpartum depression, which underlines the need for health professionals to be concerned about the health of the women in the postpartum period.

Exercises done in the postpartum period are reported to enable psychosocial well-being, less anxiety and depression, better cardiovascular adaptation, body fat/weight control, less bone loss caused by lactation, and less stress incontinence. Studies have generally indicated the importance of regular exercise in the postpartum period. Studies have generally indicated the importance of regular exercise in the postpartum period.

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2017-09-01
• Primary Completion: 2018-02-15
• Study Completion: 2018-06-15
• Study First Submitted: 2019-07-29
• Status Verified: 2019-08
• Study First Submitted QC: 2019-08-01
• Last Update Submitted: 2019-08-01
• Study First Posted: 2019-08-02
• Last Update Posted: 2019-08-02

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: Female
• Target Recruitment: 80

Inclusion Criteria

1. must be score of 13 and over in the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS),
2. must being between 19 and 40 years old,
3. must had a spontaneous vaginal delivery between the 38th and 42nd weeks of pregnancy,
4. must had a healthy newborn baby with 2500 gr and over

Exclusion Criteria

1. postpartum obstetric complications
2. psychiatric disease history before or during pregnancy

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: CROSSOVER

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Exercises Group	Exercises	-

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Effect of exercise	4 week	questionnaire and scale, Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS) The screening scale, developed by Cox et al. (1987), aimed to identify depression risk in women in the postpartum period. It's a self-report scale that is composed of 10 items aiming to measure the individual's psychological state within the past 7 days. Each item is rated on a four-point Likert scale between 0 and 3 ("Yes, all the time", "Yes, most of the time", "No, not very often", and "No, not at all". Total score ranges between 0 and 30. Higher scores indicate the severity of depression. Aydin et al. (2004) performed the reliability and validity of the scale and identified the cut-off point for Turkish women as 12.5

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Didem Şimşek Küçükkelepçe; 🇹🇷 Adi̇yaman, Turkey