Related Experiment Videos
Prenatal maternal stress: effects on pregnancy and the (unborn) child
E J H Mulder1, P G Robles de Medina, A C Huizink
1Department of Perinatology and Gynaecology, University Medical Centre, Utrecht, The Netherlands. emulder@azn.nl
Insights
Prenatal maternal stress in humans is linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes like preterm labor and developmental issues in children. Reducing maternal anxiety may improve outcomes, but further research is needed.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Health
- Developmental Psychology
- Neuroendocrinology
Background:
- Animal studies show prenatal stress permanently alters offspring neuroendocrine regulation and behavior.
- Human studies are needed to confirm comparable effects of prenatal stress on pregnancy and child development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate existing evidence on prenatal stress impacts in human pregnancy.
- To assess the effects of prenatal stress on child development.
Main Methods:
- Computerized literature search (PUBMED, Psychlit) from 1966-2001.
- Manual search of bibliographies from relevant articles.
Main Results:
- High maternal stress/anxiety increases risks for spontaneous abortion, preterm labor, and fetal malformations (e.g., reduced head circumference).
- Limited evidence suggests long-term functional disorders post-prenatal stress exposure, supported by retrospective and prospective studies.
- A model illustrating maternal, placental, and fetal factor interrelationships is presented.
Conclusions:
- Maternal psychological factors significantly contribute to pregnancy complications and adverse fetal development.
- Stress reduction interventions for anxious pregnant women may mitigate negative outcomes.
- More research is necessary to fully understand and address prenatal stress impacts.
Background:
Animal experiments have convincingly demonstrated that prenatal maternal stress affects pregnancy outcome and results in early programming of brain functions with permanent changes in neuroendocrine regulation and behaviour in offspring.
Aim:
To evaluate the existing evidence of comparable effects of prenatal stress on human pregnancy and child development.
Study Design:
Data sources used included a computerized literature search of PUBMED (1966-2001); Psychlit (1987-2001); and manual search of bibliographies of pertinent articles.
Results:
Recent well-controlled human studies indicate that pregnant women with high stress and anxiety levels are at increased risk for spontaneous abortion and preterm labour and for having a malformed or growth-retarded baby (reduced head circumference in particular). Evidence of long-term functional disorders after prenatal exposure to stress is limited, but retrospective studies and two prospective studies support the possibility of such effects. A comprehensive model of putative interrelationships between maternal, placental, and fetal factors is presented.
Conclusions:
Apart from the well-known negative effects of biomedical risks, maternal psychological factors may significantly contribute to pregnancy complications and unfavourable development of the (unborn) child. These problems might be reduced by specific stress reduction in high anxious pregnant women, although much more research is needed.