Quality of life evaluation in Japanese pregnant women with striae gravidarum: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

BackgroundStriae gravidarum is a physiological skin change that many pregnant women experience during pregnancy. The striae are often accompanied by a reddish purple color during pregnancy, and then lose pigmentation and become atrophic in the long term after pregnancy. Striae gravidarum seems to be undesirable to many pregnant women. However, the impact of striae gravidarum on pregnant women who experience it has not been clarified. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of striae gravidarum on the generic and dermatology-specific quality of life (QOL) of pregnant women.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted at three private clinics in a typical urban area in Japan. We recruited 447 pregnant women at 36 weeks of gestation; One hundred and ninety-nine pregnant women at 36 weeks of gestation participated in the study and 179, consisting of 94 primiparae and 85 multiparae, were analyzed.We used and assessed Davey’s score for striae gravidarum, World Health Organization Quality of Life assessment questionnaire for generic QOL, and Skindex-29 for dermatology-specific QOL.ResultsThe prevalence of striae gravidarum was 39.1% (27.7% in primiparae, and 51.8% in multiparae). Although there were no differences in generic QOL scores between the presence and absence of striae gravidarum and with their severity, the whole group of pregnant women and the multiparae group showed significant differences in scores on emotion of Skindex-29 between the presence and absence of striae gravidarum (p = 0.012 and p = 0.011). Pregnant women with severe striae gravidarum showed significantly higher scores on emotion of Skindex-29 compared with those with absent or mild striae gravidarum (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005).ConclusionsThere was no difference in generic QOL of pregnant women between the presence and absence of striae gravidarum, although the occurrence and severity of striae gravidarum influenced their dermatology-specific QOL. Multiparae women were especially impaired by striae gravidarum and it is considered important to prevent or reduce the severity of striae gravidarum of the multiparae group.

Quality of Life Evaluation in Iranian Postpartum Women With and Without Striae Gravidarum

“…However, there was no significant difference considering dimensions of function and symptoms and also general life quality between women with and without striae. This discrepancy between the findings might be due to striae prevalence (about 39.1%) (15). One’s impression of skin status is a determining factor in quality of life.…”

“…Al-Himdani et al (2013) suggested that striae leads to reduced quality of life and is a limiting factor in life (14). Yamaguchi et al (2012) showed there was no significant association between striae and general life quality, the dimension of symptoms and functions of skin quality of life index (15). Yamaguchi et al (2014) showed pregnant women with striae had a lower quality of life in the dimension of emotion; the preventive steps were associated with the level of quality of life in the dimension of emotion, in pregnant women with striae (16).…”

The Impact of Inflammatory and Infectious Diseases of Vulvar on Quality of Life

“…The function subscale consists of questions related to daily life, such as sleep, work, hobbies, social life, staying at home, intimacy issues, between the individual and their partners, sexual dysfunction, living alone, and fatigue. The participants' answers were converted into linear scale scores between 0 (ineffective) and 100 (maximum effect) 79. The higher the scale score (from 0 to 100) indicated a lower QOL 7…”

“…WHOQOL-BREF short form is a self-assessment questionnaire consisting of four areas and a total of 26 questions. Twenty-four questions are related to physical health, psychological health, social relationships, and environment, and the remaining two key questions are related to the overall well-being status 91213. The participants' responses range between 1 (never) and 5 (extremely).…”

Carbocysteine: A New Way for Stretch Marks Treatment

“…cal problem, but can cause psychological distress, due to adverse appearance and physical characteristics such as thickness and suppleness, and is undesirable to those affected [1]. Caused by pregnancy, rapid weight gain or loss, or a growth spurt in the early teens, the physiological cause is reportedly linked to hormonal changes and their consequences in the skin metabolism of the affected area [2].…”