Effects of Two In-hospital Antepartum Interventions on Functional Ability and Quality of Life in Early Postpartum Women.

Effects of Two In-hospital Antepartum Interventions on Functional Ability and Quality of Life in Early Postpartum Women.

The current standard of care for pregnant women deemed to be high-risk often involves recommending varying levels of activity-restriction, up to and including hospitalization. High levels of activity-restriction can lead to physical deconditioning of the mother, which can be difficult to recover from after birth. The proposed study will investigate whether a mild muscular conditioning program conducted in bed and given to hospitalized activity-restricted high-risk pregnant women will improve functional ability, cardiovascular deconditioning and overall quality of life in the postpartum period compared to a control group with no in hospital bed-rest exercise program. We hypothesize that women with a in-hospital muscle conditioning program will be better able to perform functional ability tasks and activities of daily living than a control group with no exercise program.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Hospitalized high-risk pregnant women in hospital for at least 7 days
• Diagnosed with gestational hypertension
• Diagnosed with preeclampsia (mild to moderate)
• Diagnosed with intrauterine growth restriction
• Single baby
• Expecting twins
• Expecting triplets
• Diagnosed with shortened cervix
• Diagnosed with threatened pre-term labour (not actively contracting)

Exclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosed with symptomatic placenta previa (bleeding)
• Diagnosed with severe pre-eclampsia (immediate delivery)
• Diagnosed with conditions indicating a short term hospital stays of less than 7 days
• Diagnosed with infections
• Diagnosed with heart and renal disease
• Diagnosed with diabetes
• Diagnosed with metabolic bone disease
• Diagnosed with hyper-or-hypo-thyroidism
• Diagnosed with Cushing disease and anemia
• Women carrying more than 3 babies