title: Coping strategies in low-risk pregnant women: the influence of low and late fertility.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Socio-demographic factors were strongly associated with coping styles in pregnant women. We studied fertility postponement, a new increasing phenomenon in industrialized countries.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied coping (The Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations, CISS) in 341 healthy pregnant women, with a median age of 34 years (IQR 31-36), in their third trimester, living in Veneto, region of Italy which emerges for its low and late fertility.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Task-oriented coping was the most frequently used coping styles (Median, IQR: 48, 44-53), followed by Emotion-oriented coping (Median, IQR: 44, 39-49). Avoidance-oriented coping with subscales Social Diversion and Distraction were used least frequently (Median, IQR: 44, 38-49; 21, 18-24, and 14, 12-16, respectively). Socio-demographic factors were not associated with coping styles, but maternal age was inversely correlated with task coping (Spearman coefficient rho = -0.13, p = 0.02).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Fertility postponement leads to the selection and use of ineffective coping strategies in an effort to alleviate anxiety.
authors.affiliation: Division of Perinatal Medicine, Policlinico Abano Terme , AbanoTerme , Italy .
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Zanardo
authors.forename: Petronilla
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Messina
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Trivellato
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cavallin
authors.forename: Arturo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giustardi
authors.forename: Gianluca
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Straface
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Trevisanuto
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008423:Maternal Age; D011247:Pregnancy; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology