The relationship between earthquake risk perception and sleep problems in pregnant women

OBJECTIVES: Pregnancy can be a positive yet stressful experience due to various changes. Perceived risks from natural disasters like earthquakes may negatively affect pregnant women's mental health, disrupting sleep and heightening fear and anxiety during labor. Poor sleep quality can lead to complications, gestational diabetes, preterm labor, and low birth weight in newborns. This study examined the relationship between earthquake risk perception and sleep problems in pregnant women. METHODS: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted from October to December 2023 with 303 pregnant women in two hospitals in Turkey's Central Black Sea Region. Data were collected using a "Personal Information Form," "Earthquake Risk Perception Scale," and "Scale for Identifying Sleep Problems During Pregnancy. Analyses were performed with IBM SPSS 20.0. As the data were not normally distributed, non-parametric tests were used: Mann-Whitney U for two-group comparisons, Kruskal-Wallis for multiple groups, and Spearman correlation to examine relationships between variables. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: In the study, 42% of pregnant women were in their first pregnancy, 97.7% had not experienced a major disaster. A significant relationship was found between earthquake risk perception and problems (p = 0.000; r = 0.246). CONCLUSION: A significant relationship exists between earthquake risk perception and sleep problems in pregnant women. Health professionals should enhance awareness and provide support to promote positive risk perception among them.