Date of Award

12-2022

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

MS in Epidemiology & Biostatistics

First Advisor

Dr. Sarah Saleem

Second Advisor

Dr. Shafquat Rozi

Third Advisor

Dr. Nargis Asad

Department

Community Health Sciences

Abstract

Introduction: Uncertainty and suspicion of the vaccine efficacy, miscalculation of the vaccine's usefulness, and inaccessibility to the vaccine are all factors that contribute to vaccine reluctance and predispose to vaccine related anxiety amongst pregnant women which can be deleterious to the health of both the fetus and the mother. The insufficiency and inadequacy of literature regarding efficacy of vaccination in pregnant women has resulted in fear and anxiety amongst mothers to be when opting for COVID-19 vaccination during pregnancy. The literature regarding levels of vaccine related anxiety in pregnant women owing to COVID-19 vaccination is very limited not only in LMICs but also globally. Thus, this study aimed to compare the levels of anxiety in vaccinated and unvaccinated pregnant women owing to vaccine’s perceived effects on fetal and maternal health.
Methods: An analytical comparative cross-sectional study design was employed to compare the levels of anxiety in two groups; COVID-19 vaccinated pregnant women and COVID-19 unvaccinated pregnant women visiting tertiary care government and private hospitals of Karachi. Purposive sampling technique was adopted to identify eligible candidates visiting obstetrics and gynecology departments of the study site hospitals for their antenatal care.
Results: Two hundred and ten participants were recruited in the vaccinated group and one hundred and ninety-seven in the unvaccinated group. The prevalence of vaccine related anxiety observed in vaccinated group was 19.1% and in unvaccinated group was 23.4%. Using multiple coxproportional algorithm, significant associated factors were identified that potentiated the vaccine related anxiety which included vaccination status and education status of husband. Unvaccinated pregnant women showed a higher prevalence of vaccine related anxiety PR = 2.04 (95% CI: 1.27-3.29) when adjusted for other covariates. It was also observed that women with both COVID-19 infection related anxiety and pregnancy related anxiety had a higher probability of having vaccine related anxiety PR = 1.37 (95% CI: 1.24-1.51).
Conclusion: The current study highlights that anxiety amongst unvaccinated pregnant women is higher and that COVID-19 infection and pregnancy related anxiety play a significant role in potentiating the vaccine related anxiety. The study emphasizes the need for additional research to support the safety of vaccinations during pregnancy as well as their possible risks and advantages to decrease pregnant women's worry and enhance vaccination acceptability.

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1

Last Page

53

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