Does Bed Rest Really Work?

Bed rest during pregnancy–something that you, or someone you know, has most likely had to do. One of my best friends was on bed rest during two of her pregnancies–for five months each. She would complain, it would be hard, but would you do something different if it meant the life of your baby? Probably not. So, I was very interested in an article that I read on LATimes.com saying that bed rest didn’t really help prevent preterm birth. And the most interesting part? That OB’s have known this since 2004. The article reads, “The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists states that “bed rest, hydration and pelvic rest does not appear to improve the rate of preterm birth and should not be routinely recommended.” A scientific review of the literature, published by the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews in 2004, found that pregnant women should not be systematically prescribed bed rest “due to the adverse effects that bed rest could have on women and their families, and the increased cost for the healthcare system.”” So why do doctors keep prescribing it? Because they really don’t know what else to say–and common sense would make you think that it would be better to lay down and rest then moving all about. For some women though, their lives become dark and full of despair when they have to sit and take it easy for so long. Many women who had fantastic jobs, or loved staying at home to take care of their older children became depressed–they lost their jobs and had to send kids to daycare if they didn’t have access to help. They go from being independent, thriving females to ones that are waited on hand and foot–it makes them feel useless. As John Thorp, a maternal-fetal specialist at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine in Chapel Hill who helped draft the ACOG statement says, “There’s no evidence-based way to keep someone from delivering prematurely,” By prescribing bed rest, Thorp said, “we’re ruining lives, at least temporarily.” Judith Maloni, a professor of nursing at Case Western Reserve University who has been researching pregnancy and bed rest since 1989 wrote, “Perhaps the toughest part of bed rest is psychological. The abrupt and sometimes catastrophic disruption of their life, coupled with the stress that comes with a “high-risk” pregnancy, can leave women feeling isolated, helpless and unusually dependent. It often strains the marriage and is hard on other children in the family. Like astronauts in space, women on bed rest may feel estranged from their familiar routines and may experience sensory deprivation and depression.” The other side effect to bed rest is that muscles become atrophied from keeping still for so long. Once their baby is born, the mother is weak, has a hard time tending to her newborn, and has to participate in physical therapy to regain her strength. Not the easiest task when you have a new baby to take care of. To play devil’s advocate, if you are experiencing preterm labor, or have a shortened uterus, it seems hard to resist the idea of taking it easy. Maybe moderation (instead of stopping all movement) is all that one needs. How would you feel about it?