The association between self-compassion in the postnatal period and difficult experiences with COVID-19 pandemic-related changes during pregnancy: An observational study for women at 1-month postnatal in Japan.

Aim: This observational study aimed to describe the rate and degree of difficult experiences with COVID-19 pandemic-related changes (DE) during pregnancy, clarify the relationship between DE and self-compassion of women postnatally, and investigate the influence of compassion from a partner (CP) and compassion from the woman's mother (CM) on this relationship.

Methods: Data from 46 1-month postnatal women in Japan were collected through a self-report questionnaire from October to December 2020. Self-compassion was measured using the Japanese version of the Self-Compassion Scale; DE, CP, and CM were measured using original questions based on prior studies.

Intrapartum transperineal ultrasound for evaluating uterine contraction intensity in the second stage of labor.

Purpose: To clarify whether intrapartum transperineal ultrasound (ITU) can be used to evaluate uterine contraction intensity, and whether the intensity is associated with the duration of the second stage.

Methods: A prospective observational study was performed involving 86 women with a normal singleton term fetus and more than three contractions every 10 min. ITU was performed for contractile and non-contractile periods of labor at the beginning of the second stage, and one representative "angle of progression (AoP)" image was selected for each period.