Current Events in Maternal Health Care: November 2020

In this installment, we look at a report on associations between maternal and paternal common mental disorders (CMD) before and during pregnancy and offspring preterm birth (PTB) and small for gestational age (SGA). Keep reading for more details!

PTB and SGA are leading causes of neonatal morbidity and mortality. This study followed 398 women with 609 infants and 267 men with 421 infants who were monitored and assessed for common mental disorders (CMD) before and during pregnancy. Findings suggest that persistent preconception CMB across adolescence and young adulthood in men and women was indicative of offspring PTB, but there was little association with SGA. While the sample size in this study was relatively small, the data is consistent with other cohort studies that have been conducted. Life-course epidemiology and public health policy have been grounded in assumptions that maternal exposures during pregnancy and early life are indicators for causal primacy. This data adds to a growing body of evidence highlighting the relevance of paternal exposures prior to conception for offspring outcomes.

Read the full study here.

Melissa Guevara
Director, BIRTHIFT for Everyone
@birthfitforeveryone_nonprofit nonprofit.birthfit.com

References:

Spry, E., Wilson, C., Middleton, M., Moreno-Betancur, M., Doyle, L., Howard, L, et al. Parental mental health before and during pregnancy and offspring birth outcomes: A 20-year preconception cohort of maternal and paternal exposure. 2020 Oct 12: doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2020.100564

Previous posts about current events in maternal health care:

May 2020 June 2020 July 2020 August 2020 September 2020 October 2020