The Effect of Prenatal Education Classes on the Process of Delivery

Backgrounds and Increased knowledge and skills during pregnancy prepares pregnant mothers for labor، and promotes their health. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of prenatal education on process of delivery in trained women in Imam Ali Hospital in Amol، Iran. This clinical trial was conducted on 195 pregnant women (control group 132، case group 63) attending health centers in Amol، from 16 weeks of gestation age onwards. Case group members attended 6-8 safe labor training classes، each lasting 1. 5 hours، approximately once every three weeks، and the control group only received routine care. Data were collected by means of questionnaires and a check-list. One questionnaire contained demographic details and another was a standard hospital anxiety questionnaire، and the check-list related to childbirth information (duration of second and third stages)، need for analgesic، type of delivery (natural، episiotomy، cesarean section)، the status of the baby after birth (weight، Apgar score، onset of breastfeeding)، and intensity of pain based on VAS and McGill scales. The data were analyzed by SPSS software using t-test and chi-square test. Intensity of hospital anxiety significantly decreased in educated mothers، (p=0. 002). Pain intensity rate by using VAS in transient stage (cerrical dilatation 8-10 cm) in the case group (85/68) was significantly less than control group (90/99) (p= 0. 003). In assessing pain intensity in McGill scale، study results showed a significant difference between the case (8/34) and the control (9/16) groups (p=0. 018). There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of duration of the first، second، and third stages of delivery، need for analgesic، or baby’s status (weight، Apgar، onset of breastfeeding). Performing episiotomy (p=0/000) and emergency cesarean (p=0. 01) reduced in the trained group. The results of this study indicate that education and psychological support of mothers during pregnancy leads to reduced anxiety and pain intensity in mothers and the need for emergency interventions such as episiotomy and cesarean section. Holding training classes during pregnancy، as part of prenatal care is recommended for all pregnant women.