BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Constipation and hemorrhoids are common problems during the postpartum period. Therefore, effective measures should be taken to diminish the deleterious effects of these complications on maternal health. In this study, we aimed to determine the efficacy of postpartum home care on the rate of constipation and hemorrhoids.

METHODS: This clinical trial was conducted in two phases on 276 women, who gave birth at hospitals, affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Tehran, Iran in 2013. The subjects were divided into intervention (n=92) and control (n=184) groups. First, a model of care was designed by comparative analysis and collection of data on home care guidelines for mothers and newborns, applied in different countries. In the second stage, women received home care services, based on the proposed model (on days 3-5 and 13-15 postpartum). On the other hand, subjects in the control group did not receive any services. The rates of constipation and hemorrhoids were recorded and compared via history taking and clinical examinations by midwives on day 60 following delivery. (IRCT:2013060313565N1)  

FINDINGS: The mean age of the participants was 27±5 years. Based on the evaluation of outcomes on day 60 following delivery, constipation was reported in 13% of cases in the intervention group and 26.1% of subjects in the control group (p=0.013). Moreover, hemorrhoids were reported in 12% and 9.8% of women in the intervention and control groups, respectively however, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of these complications.

CONCLUSION: Based on the results of this study, postpartum home care, complemented with physical exercise, a healthy diet, and use of laxatives in unresponsive cases to supportive treatment, could reduce constipation, whereas hemorrhoids remained unaffected.