Fear of childbirth among Chinese women in the third trimester and mode of delivery.

Abstract

Aims: Findings from studies of the influence of fear of childbirth on mode of delivery in women are equivocal. This study used the 2021 Science Database of People Mental Health to investigate the trend of caesarean sections in the Chinese population and its relationship with the fear of childbirth.

Methods: A total of 1,894 Chinese women were included in the study. We performed a hierarchical regression analysis to control sociodemographic and obstetric information, depression, anxiety, and fear of childbirth in pregnant women. Restricted cubic spline analysis was applied to determine the association between fear of childbirth and caesarean sections.

Results: The total prevalence of caesarean sections was 54.49%. The final regression analysis explained 58.7% of the variance in the mode of delivery. After controlling for confounders, fear of childbirth was a risk factor for caesarean sections in pregnant women (OR = 1.108, 95% CI: 1.093 ~ 1.124). Furthermore, the RCS analysis showed a non-linear correlation between fear of childbirth and mode of delivery (non-linear p < 0.001), and a stronger impact was found in the relation between fear of childbirth and mode of delivery in multiparous women than in primiparous women.

Conclusions: Mild or high-level fear of childbirth during the third trimester was associated with an increased number of caesarean sections, especially in multiparous women. These results suggested that healthcare professionals should underscore the importance of fear of childbirth screening and implement targeted interventions for affected women.