A Randomized Controlled Trial on Primigravid Women of Text Messaging Intervention Offering Pregnancy and Childbirth Support

Abstract

This study aimed to assess the efficacy of a text messaging intervention that offered pregnancy and childbirth support. Participants included 39 primigravid women who were less than 12 weeks pregnant. Text messages were sent twice weekly to the intervention group from week 13 of pregnancy until childbirth. Outcome measures were anxiety levels, lifestyle in the month before birth, pre-birth weight, pregnancy complications, delivery complications, birth weight, thoughts regarding the text messages, and the frequency of viewing of the text messages. For the item “I engage in body stretching,” the average value in the intervention group was significantly higher than that in the control group. For the item “I have regular bowel movements,” the average value in the intervention group was significantly lower. Most participants reported that the intervention was at least somewhat useful. This study indicates that text messaging intervention is practical and can be used to support numerous pregnant women simultaneously at a relatively low cost. Since this is a study pilot trial, large-scale studies are necessary to improve the method and allow for the generalization of the results.