(NewsNation) — More than one-third of women have lasting health problems after childbirth including lower back pain, incontinence and depression, according to a new study.
The study, published Thursday in the Lancet Global Health, is part of a series on maternal health and care. It highlighted a series of health concerns burdening women after giving birth and called for greater awareness about common issues that impact mothers beyond the point they typically receive post-natal care.
Pain after sexual intercourse was the most common condition women reported in the months or years after childbirth, followed by, low back pain, incontinence, anxiety, depression, perineal pain, fear of childbirth and secondary infertility, according to the study.
Those conditions are often neglected in clinical research, practice and policy, the World Health Organization reported.
“Throughout their lives, and beyond motherhood, women need access to a range of services from health-care providers who listen to their concerns and meet their needs – so they not only survive childbirth but can enjoy good health and quality of life,” Dr. Pascale Allotey, director of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research at WHO, said in the agency’s report.
Researchers recommended a holistic approach to limit maternal deaths. That would include focus on mothers’ socio-economic conditions, nutrition, environment, and exposure to violence.
