Does delivery way interfere on daily activities in the immediate puerperium?

Abstract

Introduction: Both vaginal delivery and cesarean section can cause discomforts compromising functional activities in the postpartum period. Objectives: To compare pain intensity, range of motion (ROM), functional performance and limitation of primiparous women after vaginal delivery and caesarean section. Methods: Short-form McGill pain questionnaire (SF-MPQ), visual analogue scale (VAS), present pain intensity (PPI), fleximeter, timed up and go test (TUG) and functional limitation questionnaire were used to measure outcomes. Results: After vaginal delivery, there were reports of pain as “painful to palpation” and “cutting” with severe intensity and uncomfortable PPI. After cesarean section, bundle ROM and trunk rotations were smaller with greater pain intensity and these women spent more time to perform TUG test activities, demonstrating a worse functional performance when compared to women with vaginal delivery. Functional limitation was present in both groups. Conclusion: Women of cesarean section group had lower ROM, highest pain intensity and worse functional performance, but most of them had some functional limitation.