en Midwifery Orginal research <div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="line-height:2;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span calibri=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><i><span new="" roman="" times="">Background:</span></i></b></span><span style="color:#000066;"> </span><span new="" roman="" times="">Pregnancy is a physiological phenomenon accompanied by numerous physical and psychological changes. Fear of contracting diseases such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) or other illnesses for which scientific knowledge is still incomplete can create anxieties in pregnant women, impacting their mental health. </span></span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span calibri=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><i><span new="" roman="" times="">Objectives:</span></i></b></span><span style="color:#000066;"><b> </b></span><span new="" roman="" times="">The present study aimed to determine the association between fear of infection with COVID-19 and the mental health of pregnant women.</span></span></span><br> <span new="" roman="" times=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><i>Methods:</i></b></span><span style="color:#000066;"> </span><span style="color:black">A cross-sectional study was conducted on 164 pregnant women attending Ayatollah Mousavi Hospital in Zanjan, Iran, in 2021. Participants were randomly selected. Data were collected using demographic questionnaires, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21), and the Fear of Disease Coronaviruses Scale (FDCS). Data were analyzed using Spearman&rsquo;s correlation coefficient and simple linear regression in SPSS 21 software.</span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span calibri=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><i><span new="" roman="" times="">Results:</span></i></b></span><span new="" roman="" times=""> Results demonstrated that 23.4% of participants experienced anxiety, 18.2% experienced depression, and only 1.2% experienced stress. Fear of infection was positively and significantly correlated with anxiety (r= 0.18, p=0.01). Additionally, income adequacy (r= -0.24, p=0.002), perceived economic status (r= -0.16, p=0.04), and spousal support (r= -0.19, p=0.01) were also negatively and significantly correlated with fear of infection.</span></span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span calibri=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><i><span new="" roman="" times="">Conclusion:</span></i></b></span><span new="" roman="" times=""> Findings reveal that the COVID-19 pandemic can culminate in fear and anxiety in pregnant women. Spousal support during this sensitive period and feelings of marital satisfaction can relieve anxiety in women.</span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span calibri="" style="font-family:"><span style="font-size:9.0pt"><span style="font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""></span></span></span></span></span></span></div> Anxiety, COVID-19, Pregnancy, Mental Health 42 50 http://nmcjournal.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-896-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Sepideh Dinmohammadi sepideh.dinmohammadi@yahoo.com 100319475328460013729 100319475328460013729 No Department of Midwifery, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran Giti Ozgoli g.ozgoli@gmail.com 100319475328460013730 100319475328460013730 No Department of Midwifery, Midwifery and Reproductive Health Research Center, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran Shabnam Towfighi Shabnam_towfighi61@yahoo.com 100319475328460013731 100319475328460013731 No Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine, Ayatollah Mousavi Hospital, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran Malihe Nasiri m.nasiri@sbmu.ac.ir 100319475328460013732 100319475328460013732 No Department of Basic sciences, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, IR Iran Fatemeh Bayat f.bayat680@gmail.com 100319475328460013733 100319475328460013733 Yes Department of Midwifery, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran