Foxcroft et al.

BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2013, 13:3

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2393/13/3

RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access

Development and validation of a pregnancy

symptoms inventory
Katie F Foxcroft1, Leonie K Callaway2, Nuala M Byrne3* and Joan Webster4

Abstract
Background: Physical symptoms are common in pregnancy and are predominantly associated with normal
physiological changes. These symptoms have a social and economic cost, leading to absenteeism from work and
additional medical interventions. There is currently no simple method for identifying common pregnancy related
problems in the antenatal period. A validated tool, for use by pregnancy care providers would be useful. The aim of
this study was to develop and validate a Pregnancy Symptoms Inventory for use by health professionals.
Methods: A list of symptoms was generated via expert consultation with health professionals. Focus groups were
conducted with pregnant women. The inventory was tested for face validity and piloted for readability and
comprehension. For test-re-test reliability, the tool was administered to the same women 2 to 3 days apart. Finally,
midwives trialled the inventory for 1 month and rated its usefulness on a 10cm visual analogue scale (VAS).
Results: A 41-item Likert inventory assessing how often symptoms occurred and what effect they had, was
developed. Individual item test re-test reliability was between .51 to 1, the majority (34 items) scoring ≥0.70. The
top four “often” reported symptoms were urinary frequency (52.2%), tiredness (45.5%), poor sleep (27.5%) and back
pain (19.5%). Among the women surveyed, 16.2% claimed to sometimes or often be incontinent. Referrals to the
incontinence nurse increased > 8 fold during the study period.
Conclusions: The PSI provides a comprehensive inventory of pregnancy related symptoms, with a mechanism for
assessing their effect on function. It was robustly developed, with good test re-test reliability, face validity,
comprehension and readability. This provides a validated tool for assessing the impact of interventions in
pregnancy.
Keywords: Checklist, Inventory, Pregnancy symptoms, Questionnaire, Survey

Background way of assessing the impact of pregnancy interventions

Physical symptoms are common in pregnancy and are on the wide range of pregnancy symptoms that women
predominantly associated with normal physiological experience. Therefore, in this study we outline our ap-
changes that occur during this time. Much of the litera- proach to the development and testing of a valid and
ture reports on one or two specific symptoms but does robust tool to assess pregnancy symptoms.
not examine the range of potential symptoms possible A review of the available literature identified a variety
during this time [1,2]. The need for such an instrument of pregnancy symptoms. Thirty-eight discrete symptoms
became apparent when designing our pregnancy inter- have been described [4], with five being reported most
vention study [3]. Lifestyle and other interventions dur- frequently. These are: frequency of micturition (passing
ing pregnancy have the potential to alter the frequency urine), fatigue, pelvic pressure, insomnia and lower back-
and severity of the full range of pregnancy symptoms, ache. Although many studies have investigated a small
such as nausea, back pain, incontinence, quality of sleep, number of pregnancy symptoms [5-7] such symptoms
mood or libido. We identified that there is no validated are not always experienced in isolation. However, the
interaction of symptoms, such as back and pelvic pain
* Correspondence: [email protected] causing sleep disturbance or sleep disturbance causing
3
School of Human Movement Studies and Institute of Health and Biomedical
Innovation, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia fatigue are not well explored. Psychosocial variables also
Full list of author information is available at the end of the article

© 2013 Foxcroft et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative
Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and
reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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impact on prevalence and frequency of pregnancy attend the Maternity Outpatient Department (MOPD).
symptoms [8]. Many symptom specific instruments exist A mixed methods design was used; Figure 1 shows the
such as the McGill Nausea Questionnaire [9], The Fa- framework for the development and testing of the in-
tigue System Checklist (FSC) [10], Roland-Morris Dis- strument. Inventory development and testing included
ability Questionnaire [11], ICIQ-SF (International the use of interviews, surveys and focus group methods.
Consultation on Incontinence Questionnaire Short Participants were medical and midwifery staff employed
Form) [12] and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) [13]. by RBWH who assisted in the development of the inven-
While these instruments may be helpful in identifying tory and pregnant women who were involved in its re-
particular symptoms they do not allow the examination finement and testing. Due to the use of mixed methods
of all potential symptoms and it is onerous to ask in this study, strategies used for data analysis are
patients to complete multiple questionnaires. reported by phase. All quantitative data was analysed
If inventories are to be useful, they should undergo the using the statistical package SPSS version 16. Ethics ap-
same rigorous reliability and validity checks as other proval was granted by the RBWH ethics committee.
instruments prior to implementation. The aim of the
project was to develop and validate a Pregnancy Phase 1 (Expert consultation)
Symptoms Inventory (PSI) as a validated research tool A group of seven health professionals (doctors and mid-
which could be used to assess a range of pregnancy wives) working in the MOPD were interviewed and asked
symptoms, and determine the impact those symptoms to name all the commonly occurring symptoms of preg-
have on quality of life. nancy reported by patients. The symptoms described by
each person were kept in a log, to be reviewed and
Methods and results categorized after all the experts had been interviewed.
Development
This study was conducted at The Royal Brisbane and Results During this phase 40 items were produced. The
Women’s Hospital (RBWH), a large tertiary referral hos- items mentioned most frequently were nausea, tiredness
pital. Approximately 5000 pregnant women per year and sore breasts.

Figure 1 Framework for the development and testing of the PSI.

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Phase 2 (Focus groups) were changed to “Brownish marks on face”, “Heart

Pregnant women who were able to provide written Palpitations” and “Painful Veins in Vagina”.
informed consent and who had booked in to the MOPD
for their obstetric care were included. Test re-test
Focus groups consisted of three groups of 5–6 preg- The Inventory was completed by 20 women twice, 2–3
nant participants (Group 1 first trimester up to 12 weeks days apart to assess for test-re-test reliability. The first
gestation; Group 2 second trimester 12 to 28 weeks ges- group of 20 women completed the first questionnaire at
tation Group 3 third trimester 28 to 40 weeks gestation). MOPD and the second test was completed at home 2–3
The groups were divided by trimester as some symptoms days later. A second group of 20 women were sent their
such as nausea are more prevalent in the first trimester first questionnaire to complete at home before a planned
whilst back pain and sleeping problems are more preva- visit and were then asked to repeat the inventory while
lent in the last trimester. The conversation was audio waiting for their planned appointment.
taped and transcribed verbatim for analysis. The This was done to overcome a potential bias that
women’s terminology formed a basis for the wording of suggests that answers may vary, depending on the envir-
the items to ensure symptoms were clearly understood. onment in which the survey is administered [14].

Results Twenty symptoms were mentioned in focus Results The test re test reliability was between .51 to 1,
groups, nineteen of which had also been mentioned by the majority (34 items) scoring ≥0.70.
the experts; the additional item identified in the focus
group sessions was vivid dreams. A 41- item Likert scale Usefulness
inventory was formulated via expert consultation and MOPD Midwives were educated about the use of the
focus groups. PSI at their routine lunch meetings and on a one-on-one
basis. Women attending a follow up visit were asked to
fill in the PSI and hand it to their midwife to peruse and
Initial validation
assess. Any problems could be discussed and referred if
Responses from interviews with professionals and focus
necessary to other HCPs. Midwives used the PSI for one
groups interviews were combined to develop the
month and recorded any referrals on the form. After the
Pregnancy Symptoms Inventory (PSI). Items were
one month trial had ended the midwives were asked to
categorized by body part or system using terminology
rate usefulness of the inventory (which was anonymous)
which is understood by lay people e.g. skin/hair, aches
on a10cm visual analogue scale. The scale ranged from
and pains, sleep etc.
“Not useful at all” to “Very useful”. After rating the use-
The reliability, validity and usefulness of the inventory
fulness quantitatively, midwives were also asked if using
were tested in a number of ways.
the instrument had prompted them to act or refer the
woman. They were also asked to comment on any other
Face validity aspect of the inventory using an open-ended format.
Initially, the entire inventory was reviewed by experts to Because midwives responses to usefulness of the in-
test face validity. Two groups of 5–9 midwives were ventory on the 10 cm visual analogue scale were not nor-
asked to comment and give feedback on the symptoms mally distributed results were analysed using the median
listed, language used and the positioning of symptoms and range. Comments on the usefulness of the inventory
on the inventory. All responses from the midwives were were reported verbatim.
noted so that adjustments could be made to better clar-
ify the inventory. Practical use (Administration of the inventory)
The tool was designed to be easily read and under- Women attending the MOPD were asked to list any
stood and was limited to one 2-sided page so it was symptoms that had occurred in the previous month and
quick and easy to fill out. The format allowed for preg- rate them on a 4-point Likert scale according to fre-
nant women to add additional symptoms and the mid- quency “never”, “rarely”, “sometimes”, “often”. They were
wives to add comments and record their actions on the then asked to rate using a 3-point Likert scale, how the
second page. symptom affected their activities of daily living as “not
The Inventory was then piloted on a group of ten limited at all”, “limited a little” or “limited a lot”. See
pregnant women of mixed ethnicity to test readability Figure 2. The women filled in their height, weight and
and comprehension. number of weeks pregnant at the top of the inventory.
The inventory was distributed when women presented
Results Three terms were not understood: Chloasma, at the clinic. Women completed the inventory while they
Palpitations and Vaginal Varicose Vein. These words waited, which took 5–7 minutes. This then enabled the
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Figure 2 Pregnancy symptoms inventory.

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midwife to quickly peruse the inventory, discuss any she receives from the MOPD. Consequently, she was
problems and make a comment in the “Midwife action”, able to provide a snap shot of referrals made during the
“Referral” (please specify) or “comment sections” as to 12-month period in which the trial was conducted. The
what actions, if any, she had taken. trial of the inventory ran from March 3rd 2008 to 9th
Frequencies were determined by the number of those April 2008 in the MOPD. As can be seen in Figure 3,
women experiencing a particular symptom in the previ- there was a notable increase in the number of referrals
ous month. Demographic data and incidence and sever- to the continence nurse in the month of March 2008
ity of each of the symptoms were calculated using (from an average of 1.8/month for the year up to 17
means and standard deviations (SD) for continuous data referrals in March) when the pregnancy symptoms in-
(e.g. age, gestation). ventory was being trialled. This represents more than an
eight-fold increase in the number of referrals. The effect
Results The inventory was given to 211 women of the inventory on referrals is further demonstrated by a
attending routine midwifery appointments for antenatal return to normal referral patterns once the trial finished.
care. Responses were received for all 211 women. The The top four “often” reported symptoms were urinary
mean age was 28.9 years (SD 6.16; range 15 – 44 years). frequency, tiredness, poor sleep and back pain, as
The mean gestation was 23.06 weeks (SD 7.46; range outlined in Table 1. These were similar to the top four
12–42 weeks). None of the women surveyed were in the symptoms that women described as “Limit a Lot” their
first trimester of their pregnancy. This was because activities of daily living (ADLs); these were back pain,
women do not present to MOPD for their first visit until tiredness, poor sleep, and nausea. The total number
18 to 20 weeks unless they have a specific medical need responding to questions on “Limit” is less as only those
and are then seen by specialist doctors not midwives for who had experienced that symptom were required to
these visits. The majority (153) were in their middle tri- give an answer. Whilst some of the symptoms had oc-
mester (≥12–28 weeks) and 52 were in their third tri- curred ‘often’ a number of symptoms reported less fre-
mester (≥28–42 weeks). The mean Body Mass Index quently had the potential to adversely affect the women’s
(BMI) for respondents was 26.8 (SD 5.89). ADLs. For example, incontinence was reported to occur
Midwives trialled the inventory for 1 month and rated “often” by only eight women. However, 34 reported it
its usefulness on a 10 cm visual analogue scale (VAS). occurred sometimes or often and 16 said that this
The majority of midwives (7 out of 10) rated the use- affected their ADLs. Similarly, Feeling depressed “often”
fulness at >7 and 4 rated it 10 out of 10. The median was reported infrequently. However many more women
VAS score was 8.4 (range .9 to 10). Midwives found that said depression affected their ADLs. Poor sleep was
the PSI alerted them to significant symptoms, and after reported by 58 women as occurring often however 96
further exploration, this prompted a referral for a spe- women said that poor sleep affected their ADLs. Table 2
cific need. Comments indicated that the tool was gener- contains full details.
ally well accepted and that it had the potential for
improving practice. Discussion
To assess outcome validity of the PSI, we assessed Compared with instruments measuring discrete symptoms,
whether this triggered midwives to make referrals our comprehensive pregnancy symptoms inventory
regarding symptoms identified. As a result, 35 women provides a useful way of assessing the range of pregnancy
were referred to a physiotherapist; 13 women were re- symptoms, and determining the impact those symptoms
ferred to the continence nurse; eleven were referred to have on quality of life. Women found it simple to complete
the mental health nurse. The continence nurse is the and midwives confirmed its usefulness.
only specialist who keeps accurate records of all referrals The PSI was developed within a robust framework,
addressing face validity, test-retest reliability, outcome
validity and practical use. We believe we have developed
a tool which allows the assessment of the number and
severity of pregnancy symptoms women experience.
We designed this tool to fill a gap we identified while
conducting a randomized clinical trial [3]. We could not
identify any brief comprehensive assessment tool to
examine the vast range of pregnancy related symptoms
in their entirety, including an assessment of the effect
these symptoms have on daily life. Our tool assesses the
full spectrum of pregnancy symptoms, and provides a
Figure 3 Incontinence referrals from maternity outpatients.
way of comparing the burden of pregnancy symptoms
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Table 1 Prevalence of self-reported pregnancy symptoms reported often or sometimes

Frequency N = Valid responses Often Sometimes Total prevalence
Urinary Frequency 209 52.20% 33% 85.20%
Tiredness 209 45.50% 41.50% 87%
Poor Sleep 211 27.50% 35.05% 62.55%
Back Pain 210 19.50% 40.50% 60.00%
Vaginal Discharge 205 17.60% 32.20% 49.80%
Forgetfulness 198 15.70% 39.90% 55.60%
Headache 200 14.50% 36% 50.50%
Vivid Dreams 201 13.90% 27.40% 41.30%
Taste Smell Changes 197 13.70% 20.30% 34.00%
Change in Nipples 196 13.30% 25% 38.80%
Nausea 207 12.60% 21.70% 34.30%
Change in Libido 197 11.20% 32% 43.20%
Hip Pelvic Pain 199 10.60% 23.10% 33.70%
Constipation 207 10.10% 23.10% 33.20%
Food Cravings 208 9.10% 28.40% 37.50%
Reflux 203 8.90% 20.70% 29.60%
Leg Cramps 210 8.60% 22.90% 31.50%
Dizziness 200 8.50% 19% 27.50%
Stretch Marks 193 7.80% 10.90% 18.70%
Greasy Skin Acne 199 7.50% 18.60% 26.10%
Restless Legs 208 7.20% 23.10% 30.30%
Dry Mouth 210 7.10% 25.70% 32.80%
Breast Pain 173 6.50% 25.50% 32.00%
Altered Body Image 190 6.30% 19.50% 25.80%
Vomiting 210 6.20% 11.40% 17.60%
Sore Nipples 199 6.00% 23.60% 29.60%
Shortness of Breath 201 5.00% 25.90% 30.90%
Itch 198 4.50% 17.70% 22.20%
Snoring 207 4.30% 10.60% 14.90%
Varicose Veins 194 4.10% 12.90% 17.00%
Incontinence 209 3.80% 12.40% 16.20%
Carpel Tunnel 208 3.40% 7.70% 11.10%
Sciatica 209 3.30% 14.40% 17.70%
Anxiety 200 3.00% 16.50% 19.50%
Chloasma 201 3.00% 3.00% 6.00%
Thrush 203 2.50% 6.40% 8.90%
Painful Vein in Vagina 204 2.50% 2.90% 5.40%
Haemorrhoids 203 1.50% 4.40% 5.90%
Feeling Depressed 201 1.50% 20.40% 21.90%
Heart Palpitations 197 1.00% 9.10% 10.10%
Fainting 198 0.00% 2.50% 2.50%
As the number of women responding to questions varied, the denominator is displayed for each symptom (N).
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Table 2 Prevalence of self-reported limitations to activities of daily living

Frequency N Limit a lot Limit a little Total prevalence
Back pain 173 11.00% 41% 52.00%
Tiredness 173 9.20% 67.30% 76.30%
Poor Sleep 176 8.50% 46% 54.50%
Nausea 186 7% 23.10% 30.10%
Headache 167 6.60% 44.30% 50.90%
Hip Pelvic Pain 199 6.30% 22.20% 28.50%
Vomiting 194 5.20% 13.90% 19.10%
Forgetfulness 168 4.80% 29.80% 34.60%
Sciatica 195 4.10% 9.30% 13.40%
Urinary Frequency 173 2.90% 36.40% 39.30%
Change in Libido 175 2.90% 14.90% 17.80%
Altered body image 172 2.30% 8.10% 10.40%
SOB 177 2.30% 23.20% 25.50%
Dizziness 177 1.70% 26.20% 28.30%
Stretch Marks 174 1.70% 2.30% 4.00%
Food Cravings 183 1.60% 3.30% 4.90%
Leg Cramps 183 1.60% 15.30% 16.90%
Restless Legs 184 1.60% 12% 13.60%
Incontinence 194 1.50% 6.70% 8.20%
Change in Nipples 171 1.20% 4.70% 5.90%
Constipation 185 1.10% 10.30% 11.40%
Reflux 186 1.10% 14% 15.10%
Thrush 194 1.00% 3.10% 4.10%
Painful vein in Vag 200 1.00% 2.50% 3.50%
Vaginal Discharge 173 0.60% 6.90% 7.50%
Taste Smell changes 178 0.60% 15.20% 15.80%
Breast Pain 174 0.60% 8.00% 8.60%
Anxiety 200 0.60% 12.20% 12.80%
Feeling Depressed 175 0.60% 15.40% 16.00%
Greasy skin acne 182 0.50% 4.90% 5.40%
Dry Mouth 189 0.50% 2.60% 3.10%
Itch 183 0.50% 4.40% 4.90%
Snoring 188 0.50% 1.60% 2.10%
Varicose veins 183 0.50% 4.40% 4.90%
Carpel tunnel 204 0.50% 4.40% 4.90%
Vivid dreams 175 0.00% 4.60% 4.60%
Sore Nipples 174 0.00% 8.20% 8.20%
Chloasma 190 0.00% 0.50% 0.50%
Haemorrhoids 199 0.00% 1.00% 1.00%
Heart Palpitations 190 0.00% 6.30% 6.30%
Fainting 190 0.00% 2.10% 2.10%
As the number of women responding to questions varied, the denominator is displayed for each symptom (N). Women who did not experience a symptom did
not answer limit question.
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between two arms of a clinical trial. We believe the PSI Information about how to manage symptoms would also
will be useful for other researchers who require an out- be a useful addition to the PSI.
come measure of pregnancy symptoms to assess the im- While our process of PSI development was robust, the
pact of lifestyle or other pregnancy interventions. initial version missed the important symptom of swollen
Our research suggests that the PSI might also have a hands and feet. Once this was identified, all experts
role in clinical practice. We identified that when mid- involved in the study agreed that this particular symp-
wives were prompted by this tool, they undertook add- tom should be included.
itional clinical assessment, which initiated referral to a While we included focus groups with women from the
range of health care providers. This resulted in add- first trimester, none of the participants who filled out
itional care from physiotherapists, continence nurses our survey were in the first trimester. Therefore, any fu-
and mental health professionals. These referrals may ture research on the PSI should include women in their
have been beneficial to the women, although our re- first trimester.
search was not designed to assess any improvement in
women’s symptoms following such referrals. We believe Conclusion
the non threatening nature of our PSI may be particu- In summary, we have developed a Pregnancy Symptoms
larly valuable in identifying women with issues that may Inventory that should be very useful in the research set-
be particularly sensitive or difficult to discuss, such as ting, and, subject to further research, may be a useful cli-
urinary incontinence. It has been estimated that total an- nical tool.
nual cost of urinary incontinence in women from the
Competing interests
United States is around $12.4 billion [15]. Consequently, The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
early identification of incontinence may lead to cost
savings in this area. There is strong evidence that pelvic Authors' contributions
KFF: Has been involved in design of the study, data collection, analysis and
floor exercises performed during and after pregnancy drafting the manuscripts. NMB has been involved in interpretation of the
can prevent urinary incontinence. One Australian study data and revising the intellectual content. LKC has been involved in the
that investigated over 30,000 women in differing age design of the study and revision of the intellectual content. JW has been
involved in the design of the study, provided oversight of the data collection
groups found that one in three mid-age and older and data analysis and revision of the intellectual content. All authors have
women experience leaking urine and that it was signifi- read and approved the final manuscript.
cantly associated with parity. This study suggested, as
Authors' information
less than half of these women had sought help, that this KFF: RN, RM, MAppSc (Research).
issue should be brought up during their antenatal care LKC: MBBS (Hons), FRACP, PhD.
[16]. Available evidence indicates, because incontinence NMB: BHMS, MAppSc, PhD.
JW: RN, RM, BA.
is a somewhat embarrassing subject socially, that
patients and medical practitioners alike are reticent Acknowledgments
about discussing it [17]. The PSI could be used to flag We would like to thank the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Brisbane,
Australia and Queensland University of Technology for their support of the
such problems; patients who are uncomfortable bringing project.
up the topic may find it easier to “tick a box”, to alert Thanks to the midwives from MOPD and Dr Charles Denaro for their
their midwife or doctor that they are experiencing support.
problems. Further, since the PSI has been designed Funding
to be used at various time points, it may be helpful The project was supported by a RBWH foundation strategic initiative grant.
in the early detection and treatment of pregnancy
Author details
symptoms, which in turn may reduce absenteeism via 1
Department of Internal Medicine, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital,
early medical intervention. This is an area that would Brisbane, Australia. 2Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital and School of
require further study. Medicine, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. 3School of Human
Movement Studies and Institute of Health and Biomedical Innovation,
Our PSI was developed in Australia, in a multicultural, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. 4Centre for Clinical
English speaking cohort, and so it may not be Nursing, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, Brisbane, Australia.
transferrable to other populations. Further testing of the
Received: 2 July 2012 Accepted: 27 December 2012
usefulness of the inventory in larger populations and in Published: 16 January 2013
different settings is required to test the external validity
of the instrument. It would also be useful to test the ef- References
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doi:10.1186/1471-2393-13-3
Cite this article as: Foxcroft et al.: Development and validation of a
pregnancy symptoms inventory. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2013 13:3.

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