Assessment of recovery after childbirth; a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Postpartum recovery is often underestimated and traditionally focused on physical healing, despite evidence suggesting that recovery spans multiple domains and extends well beyond six weeks.

AIM: To assess the proportion of women who are fully recovered across physical, mental, sexual, and functional domains 3-6 months postpartum, and to identify factors associated with full recovery and recovery duration.

METHODS: This cross-sectional study surveyed postpartum women (3-6 months after childbirth) using a structured online questionnaire. Full recovery was defined as recovery within 24 weeks in all four domains. Descriptive statistics, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis, chi-square tests, t-tests, and logistic regression were used to analyze recovery proportions, time to recovery, and associated factors.

FINDINGS: Among 1117 respondents, 42.5 % reported full recovery in all four domains. Median time to full recovery was 15.0 weeks (IQR: 8.0), and mean time was 14.5 weeks (95 % CI: 13.8-16.2), accounting for censored cases. Recovery was fastest for daily activities (median 3.0 weeks) and slowest for resumption of sexual activity (median 7.0 weeks). Delivery experience and maternal age were significantly associated with full recovery. Parity, mode of delivery, and other clinical variables showed no independent association.

CONCLUSION: Fewer than half of women fully recovered across all domains by 3-6 months postpartum. These findings challenge the conventional six-week recovery expectation and underscore the need for multidimensional assessment and extended postpartum care. Interventions such as prenatal education, postpartum mental health screening, and targeted support may improve recovery outcomes.