STRIAE GRAVIDARUM RISK FACTORS IN PRIMIPARAE PREGNANT WOMEN

Striae gravidarum (SG) is the most common change in connective tissue among pregnant women which seems undesirable to many of them. The aim of this study was to determine the possible risk factors for the development of SG among women who had first pregnancy. A descriptive-cross sectional study was conducted on 400 primiparous women delivering at Emam Reza hospital of Urmia city. All of them were assessed during the labor period for presence of SG by questionnaire. The data were collected via questionnaire and physical examination. The dependent variables in study group were the presence and absence of striae and the severity of striae which was evaluated by Atwal’s score. The collected data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, t- test and Fisher exact test by using SPSS 20. Out o f the 400 women, 346(86.5%) women had SG, while 30(8.7%), 157(45.4%), 111(32.1%), and 48 (13.9%) had very mild, mild, moderate and severe stria respectively. The most common site of SG was abdomen. Family history of SG in mother, big abdominal and hip girths, maternal age, family income, mean weight gain during pregnancy were associated with SG. T his study has shown that both genetic and physical factors may play an important role in development of SG.