The purpose of our study was to evaluate the awareness of women with the state of diastasis recti abdominis (DRA), awareness of measures to reduce DRA, and the impact of the type of exercise on DRA and other postpartum problems. Data were collected using the 1ka questionnaire, which included 21 questions.
The obtained data were collected and edited in Microsoft Excel 2013 and then analyzed in the IBM SPSS 21 statistical program IBM. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the survey questionnaire. Frequencies and corresponding response percentages, mean values, standard deviations, minimum and maximum responses were shown. The results were given in the form of tables. The Hi-square test was used to check statistically significant differences in the distributions of responses. To find statistically significant differences in the averages of the two independent groups, we used the t-test for two independent samples. The homogeneity of the variances was checked using the Leven test. A nonparametric Spearman correlation test was used to find the strength of the relationship between two numerical variables. All tests were performed at a risk level of 5%.
Our findings show that more than a third (42.3%) of mothers are aware of the state of DRA after childbirth by a professionally trained worker. Approximately one third (30.9%) of women were measured by a physiotherapist after giving birth in a maternity hospital, most common in the Šempeter maternity hospital near Nova Gorica (84.6%), in Jesenice (68.4%) and in Ljubljana (66.4%). In the maternity hospitals in Ptuj, Slovenj Gradec and Celje, not a single woman was measured. Knowledge of the correctness of exercise during pregnancy and after childbirth was on average good (10.5 out of 15 points). Slightly less than a quarter (21.5%) of all respondents who were physically active after childbirth participated in guided exercises for pregnant women, while only 3.5% of respondents took part in live exercises. Participation rates were significantly higher during pregnancy, when the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic were not yet present (approximately one third of all respondents were active during pregnancy). More than three-quarters of respondents who have DRA also have any of the consequences of DRA. Most often, women with DRA report low back pain (67.0%), poor posture (54.0%) and urinary incontinence (36.0%). In respondents who perform guided exercise after childbirth, exercise has a better effect on low back pain than in respondents who do not perform guided exercise (but perform some other physical activity such as walking, running, cycling, etc.).
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