Katri Nieminen

Linköping University | LiU · Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine (IKE)

LBTQ people have increased risks of complications during birth, risks potentially driven by minority stress and increased levels of mental illness and fear of childbirth. With the aim of exploring reproductive injustices in postpartum care for LBTQ people, we analyzed qualitative interviews where 22 LBTQ birth and non-birth parents shared their exp...

Background One third of all childbirths are experienced as traumatic, which is a risk for developing birth-related PTSD (BR-PTSD). Understanding factors that increase the level of BR-PTSD symptoms (BR-PTSS) is crucial for the development of adequate preventive strategies. Most previous research has utilised general PTSD measurements, which negative...

Introduction Depression and anxiety are significant contributors to maternal perinatal morbidity and a range of negative child outcomes. This systematic review and meta‐analysis aimed to review and assess the diagnostic test accuracy of selected screening tools (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS], EPDS‐3A, Patient Health Questionnaire [PHQ...

Background: Optimizing women's childbirth experience is essential for development of quality mother infant relationships. The Birth Satisfaction Scale-Revised (BSS-R) can be used to measure birth satisfaction. Aim: The current investigation sought to translate and validate a Swedish version of the BSS-R. Method: Following translation, a compre...

Objective: City Birth Trauma Scale (City BiTS) is an instrument designed to evaluate and diagnose postpartum posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) according to the 5th edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). No validated Swedish instrument exists to measure postpartum PTSD according to DSM-5. Therefore, the primary...

Objective: To explore the care experiences of lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LBTQ) people during births where complications have arisen. Design: Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with self-identified LBTQ people who had experienced obstetrical and/or neonatal complications. Setting: Interviews were conducted in...

The primary aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of previous trauma exposure among expectant birth-giving parents and their partners within a LBTQ population. The secondary aims were to compare fear of childbirth (FOC) and quality of life (QoL) in relation to previous trauma exposure in pregnant LBTQ people and their partners. A furthe...

Background Menstrual pain is relatively common among young girls. Many girls turn to youth clinics when seeking care for menstrual problems. Objective The objective of the study was to describe midwives’ experiences of supporting girls with menstrual pain. Methods This is a qualitative study with an inductive approach. Semi-structured interviews...

Background: Most studies of fear of childbirth (FOC) are conducted on heterosexual cisgender pregnant populations of birth-giving parents. Among lesbian and bisexual women, as well as transgender and queer people (LBTQ), minority stress can add an extra layer to FOC. Gender binary and cisnormative assumptions leave it to the patient to educate and...

The primary aim of the study was to analyze differences in post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and quality of life (QoL) between women with and without severe fear of childbirth postpartum (PP FOC). The secondary aims were to analyze the correlation between PP FOC and PTSS, and PP FOC and QoL, in women undergoing complicated childbirth. This cros...

Objective To conduct an empirical validation of the theoretical model of midwifery care suggested by Peters et al. (2020). Design A qualitative deductive methodology was used to validate the theoretical model of aims and objectives of midwifery care. The existing model was validated for midwifery care before, during and after childbirth by intervi...

OBJECTIVE: To describe how women with severe fear of childbirth postpartum recall the professional support they received before, during, and after childbirth. STUDY DESIGN: This is a qualitative study based on telephone interviews with 10 women reporting fear of childbirth postpartum and who had given birth in 2018. They were interviewed using a se...

Objective To explore and describe norms concerning maternity, femininity and cisgender in lesbian and bisexual women and transgender people (LBT) assigned female at birth, with an expressed fear of childbirth (FOC). Design Semi-structured interviews were conducted with self-identified LBT people with an expressed FOC. Participants 17 self-identif...

Background Fear of childbirth (FOC) may affect family planning in lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LBT) couples with two potential carriers of a pregnancy. FOC has previously been researched in heterosexual women, while experiences of LBT people have remained unattended. The choice of birth-giving partner in same-sex couples has gained some atten...

Objective: To explore and describe thoughts about and experiences of pregnancy, childbirth and reproductive healthcare in lesbian and bisexual women and transgender people (LBT) with an expressed fear of childbirth (FOC). Design: Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with self-identified LBTs with an expressed FOC. Participants...

Introduction: The objective of this study was to calculate costs associated with severe FOC during pregnancy and peripartum by comparing two groups of women expecting their first child and attending an ordinary antenatal program; one with low fear of childbirth (FOC) and one with severe FOC. Material and methods: In a prospective case control co...

The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of trauma-focused guided Internet-based cognitive behaviour therapy for relieving posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms following childbirth, a problem that about 3% women encounter postpartum. Following inclusion, 56 traumatized women were randomized to either treatment or to a waiting list...

ABSTRACT Background: Although giving birth is a positive experience for many, some 10% of pregnant Swedish women suffer from severe fear of childbirth (FOC), which impairs their daily functioning and poses a risk for a negative delivery experience. This thesis focuses on the mental and health-economic effects of severe FOC, and explores new treatme...

Objective: The aim of the present study was to test the feasibility of Internet interventions among nulliparous women suffering from severe fear of childbirth (FOC) by means of an Internet-delivered therapist-supported self-help program based on cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT). Design: Prospective, longitudinal cohort study. Setting: A fea...

Objective To describe the expectations concerning imminent childbirth before and after 8 weeks of internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy (ICBT) among nulliparous pregnant women with severe fear of childbirth.DesignQualitative study of nulliparous pregnant women's narratives before and after CBT.SettingThe first ICBT programme for treating sev...

To investigate Swedish women's level of antenatal fear of childbirth at various gestational ages, and factors associated with intense fear and with preference for cesarean section. A cross-sectional study. All antenatal clinics in four geographical areas. Thousand six hundred and thirty-five pregnant women at various gestational ages recruited duri...

Preeclampsia is a pregnancy-specific syndrome. The immune system in preeclampsia is changed with an increased innate activity and there is a hypothesis of a shift towards Th1-type immunity. The aim of this study was to determine a spectrum of soluble immunological factors denoting different aspects of immune activation in third trimester sera from...

It has been suggested that maladaptation of the maternal immune response during pregnancy might be a causal factor for preeclampsia. This study was designed to examine the systemic immune status at both the innate level and the adaptive level in pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia (n=15) and normal pregnancies (n=15). Spontaneous and in vitro-i...

A Th1-shift has been suggested to be involved in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia. This study was designed to compare Th1/Th2 related cytokine secretion in blood between women with preeclampsia (n = 15) and normal pregnancies (n = 15), using a high-sensitivity technique for cytokine detection. Spontaneous as well as 'fetus-specific' and recall anti...

Preeclampsia is a severe complication engaging 5–10% of all pregnancies. Immune mechanisms have been suggested in the etiology of this disease. AIM: To study the systemic spontaneous and fetus-specific cytokine production by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in women with preeclampsia and normal pregnancies. METHODS: PBMCs from nine women...