Determinants of Prenatal Childbirth Fear during the Third Trimester among Low-Risk Expectant Mothers: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Fear of Childbirth (FOC) can significantly impact women's physical and psychological health; therefore, healthcare providers must provide proactive care, which means they have to intervene before FOC becomes tokophobia. This study's purpose is to evaluate the determinants of prenatal childbirth fear during the third trimester among low-risk expectant mothers.

Methods: A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted at the Maternal and Children Hospital's outpatient clinics in Najran City, Saudi Arabia, from April to July 2023. The study involved 377 nulliparous and multiparous women, using a systemic random sampling technique. The data were collected using an interview schedule composed of questions related to demographic and obstetrics characteristics, the FOC questionnaire, and a multidimensional scale of perceived social support. Significant FOC predictors were examined using a binary logistic regression model.

Results: There was a statistically significant difference between nulliparous and multiparous participants concerning FOC; 80.0% of nulliparous participants had significant FOC compared to 67.8% of multiparous participants ( = 0.011). A binary logistic regression clarified that regular antenatal care and family and spousal support were significantly negatively correlated with significant FOC among multiparous and nulliparous women ( < 0.05). For multiparas, FOC was associated with pregnancy planning and previous labor-related complications. In addition, friends' support was an important predictor of significantly lower FOC among nulliparous women ( < 0.05).

Conclusions: Significant FOC was higher in nulliparous women when compared to multiparous women. Numerous obstetric variables and different types of social support play important roles in significant FOC. Special attention and support should be provided to high-risk women for proper FOC management during prenatal classes to improve their childbirth experiences.