Table 2.
Measurement tools used, prevalence, and parity in Fear of Childbirth studies
| First author, year of publication, [reference number] | Measurement tools used, in descending order of cut-off point | Level of FOC | Time point of FOC | Prevalence, % (95% CI) | Number | Parity groupa |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W-DEQ | ||||||
| Rouhe 2015 [65] | W-DEQ, with score ≥ 100 | Very severe FOC | Early pregnancy | 8.1 (7.3–8.9) | 371/4575 | 1 |
| Heimstad 2006 [78] | W-DEQ score > 100 W-DEQ > 95 |
‘Serious FOC; of clinical importance’ | Mid pregnancy | 5.5 (4.3–6.8) 7.3 (5.9–8.8) |
72/1321 96/1321 |
2 |
| Nieminen 2009 [79] | W-DEQ score ≥ 100 W-DEQ score ≥ 85 |
Very intense FOC Intense FOC |
Pregnancy (various times) | 5.7 (4.6–6.9) 15.6 (13.8–17.4) |
93/1635 254/1635 |
2 |
| Adams 2012 [80] |
W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | ‘High fear’ | At 32 weeks | 7.5 (6.4–8.7) | 165/2206 | 2 |
| Jespersen 2014 [81] | W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | Severe FOC | At 37 weeks | 9.0 (7.8–10.2) | 207/2310 | 1 |
| Jokić-Begić 2014 [82] | W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | FOC | Late pregnancy | 11.5 (7.4–16.8) | 23/200 | 2 |
| Lukasse 2014 [62] | W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | Severe FOC | In pregnancy (various times) | 11.2 (total population in six countries) b(10.5–12.0) Belgium: 6.3 (4.7–8.2) Iceland: 8.4 (6.3–10.9) Denmark: 9.2 (7.6–10.9) Norway: 11.8 (10.5–13.2) Sweden: 14.8 (12.6–17.2) Estonia: 14.8 (12.6–17.3) |
Total: 769/6870 B: 52/828 I: 49/585 D: 115/1252 N: 278/2351 S: 142/958 E: 133/896 |
2 |
| Söderqvist 2004 [83] | W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | Severe FOC | Late pregnancy | 13.5 (11.4–15.8) | 127/942 | 2 |
| Zar 2002 [84] | W-DEQ score ≥ 85 | Severe FOC | Late pregnancy | 11.1 (8.5–14.1) | 56/506 | 2 |
| Fenwick 2009 [77] | W-DEQ score ≥ 71 | ‘High level of fear’ | Late pregnancy 6 weeks postpartum |
26.2 (21.9–30.8) 22.4 (17.3–28.1) |
105/401 55/246 |
2 |
| Hall 2009 [85] | W-DEQ score ≥ 66 | ‘High fear’ | Late pregnancy | 24.9 (21.6–28.4) | 162/650 | 2 |
| Fear of Birth scale (FOBS) | ||||||
| Haines 2011 [67] | Fear of Birth Scale (FOBS) score > 50. | Elevated level of FOC | Mid-pregnancy | Sweden: 31.1 (26.5–36.0) Australia: 29.5 (21.6–38.4) |
119/383 36/122 |
2 |
| Ternström 2014 [72] | Fear of Birth Scale (FOBS) score > =60. | Childbirth related fear (CBRF) | Mid-pregnancy | 22.1 (18.9–25.6) | 134/606 | 2 |
| Various scales to measure FOC | ||||||
| Elvander 2013 [63] | First Baby Study Birth Anticipation Scale score 21–30 | High fear | Late pregnancy | 20.3 (18.9–21.8) | 611/3005 | 1 |
| Lowe 2000 [74] | Childbirth Attitudes Questionnaire, 1 Standard Deviation above mean |
High fear | Late pregnancy | 19.3 (14.8–24.4) | 54/280 | 1 |
| Poikkeus 2006 [75] | Revised Fear-of-Childbirth questionnaire, total score ≥ 6 | Severe fear | Mid pregnancy | 11.0 (8.8–13.5) | 82/746 | 2 |
| Single item question – 3 point Likert response scale | ||||||
| Geissbuehler 2002 [69] | ‘Are you anxious or afraid about the birth?’, answer by ‘Yes, very afraid’ | FOC | Late pregnancy | 5.3 (4.8–5.8) | 450/8528 | 2 |
| Laursen 2008 [64] | ‘Are you anxious about the course of the upcoming delivery?’ answered with ‘A lot‘ | FOC | Early pregnancy Late pregnancy |
7.6 (7.3–7.9) 7.4 (7.1–7.7) |
2308/30,480 2245/30,480 |
1 |
| Single item question – 4 point Likert response scale | ||||||
| Hildingsson 2010 [60] | ’How do you feel when thinking about labour and birth?’ answered with: ‘A lot/very much’ | Childbirth related fear | Mid pregnancy | 14.0 (12.1–16.1) | 170/1212 | 2 |
| Nilsson 2012 [61] | ’To what extent do you experience worries and fear?’ answered with: ‘A great deal/very much’ c | FOC | 1 year after childbirth | 15.1 (12.6–17.9) | 115/761 | 2 |
| Single item question – 5/6 point Likert response scale | ||||||
| Eriksson 2005 [71] | A statement ‘Childbirth-related fear influences my daily life in a negative sense’ with a 6-point Likert scale | Intense fear | Assessed retrospectively | 22.9 (18.9–27.3) | 94/410 | 2 |
| Waldenström 2006 [70] | A question: ‘How do you feel when thinking about labour and birth?‘answered by ‘Very negative‘ | Childbirth related fear | Early pregnancy | 3.6 (3.0–4.4) | 97/2662 | 2 |
| Miscellaneous | ||||||
| Fabian 2004 [73] | Yes to a question on whether they had attended/needed to attend a clinic for counseling because of FOC | FOC | Early pregnancy | 15.4 (14.0–16.9) | 385/2503 | 2 |
| Räisänen 2014 [66] | Register study. FOC defined according to ICD – code 099.80 | FOC | Pregnancy | 3.7 (3.6–3.7) | 28,960/ 788,317 | 2 |
VAS Visual Analogue Scale, FOC Fear Of Childbirth
aParity group 1 = nulli/primiparous women only, 2 = both primi- and multiparous women
bSignificant difference in country rates (chi-square = 55.5, d.f. = 5, p < 0.0001)
cSame study population as in Hildingsson 2010