Affective temperaments in pregnancy.

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Reproductive Health
• Psychology

Background:

• Mood disorders during pregnancy are widely studied.
• Antecedents of mood disorders, such as affective temperaments, are less understood in pregnant populations.
• This research addresses the gap in understanding how pregnancy influences affective temperaments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate affective temperament variations in pregnant women.
• To compare affective temperaments between pregnant women and a non-pregnant control group.
• To identify potential predictors of affective temperament scores during pregnancy.

Main Methods:

• Included 100 pregnant women (third trimester) and 75 non-pregnant controls.
• Utilized the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM Axis-I Disorders (SCID-I) for psychiatric diagnoses.
• Assessed affective temperaments using the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego Auto-questionnaire (TEMPS-A).

Main Results:

• Pregnant women exhibited significantly lower cyclothymic, irritable, and anxious temperament scores compared to controls (p < 0.05).
• Pregnancy was a predictor of reduced cyclothymic, irritable, and anxious temperaments.
• Younger age and lower education predicted higher cyclothymic, anxious, and depressive temperaments, with younger age also predicting higher irritable temperament.

Conclusions:

• The third trimester of pregnancy is associated with significantly diminished affective temperament.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the underlying biological mechanisms driving these findings.