Purpose: This study was conducted to develop a couple-centered antenatal education program and to test the program’s feasibility. Methods: With a preliminary-experimental study design, 33 pregnant couples who were expecting their first child participated in this study. The program consisted of four sessions (1 hour/session/week) of education and counseling. Data were collected before and after the intervention from September 2018 to April 2019 at a women’s hospital in Daejeon, Korea, with demographic data forms, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Maternal–Fetal Attachment Scale, Korean Newborn Care Confidence Scale, Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire, and Dyadic Adjustment Scale-10. Results: The pregnant women and their husbands were on average 32.30±3.11 and 33.21±6.25 years old, respectively. The mean marriage duration was 2.34±1.63 years, the gestational age was 31.30±2.66 weeks, and 78.8% of the couples had a planned pregnancy. After the program, both the pregnant women and their husbands showed significant improvements in attachment to the fetus and confidence in providing infant care. Prenatal depression, prenatal stress, and fear of childbirth in pregnant women significantly decreased after completing the program. However, the dyadic adjustment score did not change significantly either in the pregnant women or their husbands. Conclusion A couple-centered antenatal education program seems to be effective for couples adjusting to parenthood, but further studies should explore ways to have a positive impact on couples’ relationships.

Purpose: This study was conducted to develop a couple-centered antenatal education program and to test the program’s feasibility. Methods: With a preliminary-experimental study design, 33 pregnant couples who were expecting their first child participated in this study. The program consisted of four sessions (1 hour/session/week) of education and counseling. Data were collected before and after the intervention from September 2018 to April 2019 at a women’s hospital in Daejeon, Korea, with demographic data forms, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, Perceived Stress Scale, Maternal–Fetal Attachment Scale, Korean Newborn Care Confidence Scale, Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Experience Questionnaire, and Dyadic Adjustment Scale-10. Results: The pregnant women and their husbands were on average 32.30±3.11 and 33.21±6.25 years old, respectively. The mean marriage duration was 2.34±1.63 years, the gestational age was 31.30±2.66 weeks, and 78.8% of the couples had a planned pregnancy. After the program, both the pregnant women and their husbands showed significant improvements in attachment to the fetus and confidence in providing infant care. Prenatal depression, prenatal stress, and fear of childbirth in pregnant women significantly decreased after completing the program. However, the dyadic adjustment score did not change significantly either in the pregnant women or their husbands. Conclusion A couple-centered antenatal education program seems to be effective for couples adjusting to parenthood, but further studies should explore ways to have a positive impact on couples’ relationships.

OBJECTIVE: Arterial compliance (AC) reflects the buffering function of the vessel. Low AC caused by arterial stiffness increases pulse pressure amplitude. Therefore, Low AC must be correlated with high cardiovascular mobidity and mortality in HD patients. Dialysate calcium concentration is potentially a main determinant of serum ionized calcium level and the vasoconstriction is associated with high calcium concentration. Therefore, We conducted a study for evaluation of the interdialytic effects of treatment with a low dialysate calcium (LdCa) concentration and high dialysate calcium (HdCa) concentration on the changes of AC, BP, biochemical parameters. METHODS: Eight HD patient (mean age 45.5, sex ratio 1 : 1) were studied. The mean HD period was 3 years. Arterial Compliance, stroke Volume, SBP, DBP, PP, MAP, Ionized Ca, T-CO2, P and CaxP product were compared after treatment with a LdCa and HdCa concentration for each 10 sessions. RESULTS: AC were 0.143+/-0.076 mm2/kPa in baseline, 0.166+/-0.097 mm2/kPa in LdCa (1.25 mmol/L) dialysate, 0.142+/-0.082 mm2/kPa in HdCa (1.75 mmol/L) dialysate. SBP, DBP, MAP and PP were 157.75+/-15.97, 94.25+/-9.48, 114.12+/-10.56, 63.50+/-10.87 mmHg in baseline and 135.25+/-13.00, 78.75+/-11.24, 98.37+/-15.14, 56.50+/-5.95 mmHg in LdCa dialysate and 160.50+/-15.36, 94.05+/-10.34, 115.75+/-9.64, 62.00+/-15.71 mmHg in HdCa dialysate. Ionized Ca were 4.66+/-0.40 mg/dL in baseline, 4.45+/-0.28 mg/dL in LdCa dialysate and 4.65+/-0.43 mg/dL in HdCa dialysate. However, there were no changes of other biochemical parameters. CONCLUSION: Treatment with LdCa dialysis, by minimizing the risk for LdCa-induced hypocalcemia, may have a beneficial role in the prevention of the ongoing reduction of arterial compliance in HD patients and thus improve cardiovascular prognosis.
Blood Pressure ; Calcium* ; Compliance ; Dialysis ; Humans ; Hypocalcemia ; Mortality ; Prognosis ; Renal Dialysis* ; Sex Ratio ; Stroke Volume ; Vascular Stiffness ; Vasoconstriction