Paper: A Randomized Controlled Trail of Effects of Relaxation Training on Psychological Stress Responses for Hospitalized Women with Preterm Labor (Sigma Theta Tau International's 21st International Nursing Research Congress)

Tuesday, 13 July 2010: 10:30 AM

Li-Lan Chuang, MSN, RN
Department of Nursing, Chang Gung Institute of Technology, Tao-Yuan, Taiwan
Li-Chan Lin, PhD
Institute of Clinical Nursing, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan

Learning Objective 1: They can demonstrate three components of imagery relaxation.

Learning Objective 2: They can apply this easy intervention and emphasize the significance of relaxation training in clinical setting.

There is growing evidence that prenatal maternal stress(PNMS) may be hazardous to pregnant, fetus, and infant health. Mind body interventions designed to provide individuals with the skills necessary to manage the inevitable stress of life are becoming more widely used in order to prevent and reverse these deleterious consequences. Relaxation is one of stress managements. The purposes of this study were to examine the effects of relaxation training on stress responses for hospitalized women with preterm labor. A randomized two-group quasi-experimental design was conducted. This study was conducted from delivery room and obstetric ward in two medical centers located on northern Taiwan. Participants were recruited if they met these criteria: (1) diagnosed with preterm labor, (2) between 20 and 34 gestational weeks, (3) singleton pregnancy, (4) hospitalization at time of entry into the study, and (5) cervical dilatation was less than 3 cm. Out of 500 pregnant women with hospitalization screened, 102 fit the eligibility criteria, and were randomized into two groups according to their numbered month of recruitments. The intervention group received a 13-min imagery relaxation daily. Instruments of prenatal maternal stress included Perceived Stress Scale, State Anxiety Scale, and Pregnancy Anxiety and then measured both pre-intervention and post-intervention. All participants did post-test on 1, 2, 4, 8, and 12 weeks until they gave birth. This study received ethical approval from the hospital Institutional Review Board and then obtained informed consent from all study participants. Data analysis was performed with Hierarchical Linear Model to deal with the repeated measurements and unbalance time points. Findings indicated that the intervention groups had a quadratic trajectory in state anxiety reduces significantly from the control group. The brief, no invaded relaxation training for women who hospitalized and distressed fetus health was effective in reducing anxiety, and enhanced women’s health.

See more of: Maternal-Child Health Factors
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