title: Supplemental written information improves prenatal counseling: a randomized trial.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine if maternal knowledge of prematurity is improved when verbal gestational age-specific counseling is supplemented with written gestational age-specific information.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective, randomized study of 60 pregnant participants assessed to be at risk for premature delivery between 23 and 34 weeks' gestation. Counseling in the control group consisted of gestational age-specific verbal information, and counseling in the intervention group consisted of written gestational age-specific information 1 hour before the verbal gestational age-specific information. Both groups completed a Prematurity Knowledge Questionnaire after counseling and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory before and after counseling. The Prematurity Knowledge Questionnaire consisted of questions regarding short-term problems (immature lungs, intraventricular hemorrhage, retinopathy, feeding problems, infection, apnea, and jaundice), long-term problems (chronic lung disease, postdischarge respiratory infections, visual impairment, hearing impairment, brain damage, and learning and behavior problems), and numerical outcome data (probabilities of survival, survival without significant morbidity, severe intraventricular hemorrhage, severe retinopathy, and chronic lung disease).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Knowledge of short-term problems was not statistically different between the intervention (82%) and control groups (67%). Knowledge of long-term problems was better in the intervention (71%) than the control group (45%). Knowledge of numerical data was better in the intervention (48%) than the control group (29%). State-Trait Anxiety Inventory scores decreased after counseling in the intervention group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Supplementation of face-to-face verbal counseling with written information improved knowledge of long-term problems and knowledge of numerical outcome data, and it also decreased anxiety in women expecting a premature delivery.
authors.affiliation: Scott and White Healthcare, Temple, Texas, USA.
authors.forename: Anbu Durai
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Muthusamy
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leuthner
authors.forename: Charlene
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gaebler-Uhing
authors.forename: Raymond G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Hoffmann
authors.forename: Shun-Hwa
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Mir Abdul
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Basir
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D032882:Comprehension; D003376:Counseling / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D011939:Mental Recall; D007752:Obstetric Labor, Premature / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000523:psychology; D010174:Pamphlets; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013781:Texas