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Association between theta power in 6-month old infants at rest and maternal PTSD severity: A pilot study

Pilar M Sanjuan1, Carly Poremba1, Lucinda R Flynn2

  • 1Center on Alcoholism, Substance Abuse, and Addictions, University of New Mexico, 2650 Yale Boulevard, SE, MSC11-6280, Albuquerque, NM 87106, USA.

Neuroscience Letters
|July 31, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Infants born to mothers with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) show altered brain activity. Higher perinatal PTSD severity in mothers was linked to reduced frontal neural activity in their infants, suggesting potential developmental impacts.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Psychiatry

Background:

  • Infants of mothers with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) exhibit poorer behavioral and emotional regulation.
  • The neurophysiological correlates of perinatal maternal PTSD in infants are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between the severity of perinatal maternal PTSD and infant frontal neural activity.

Main Methods:

  • A pilot study involving 14 infants.
  • Measured infant frontal neural activity using magnetoencephalography (MEG) theta power during rest.
  • Correlated resting-state MEG theta power with perinatal PTSD severity.

Main Results:

  • A significant correlation was found between resting left anterior temporal/frontal theta power and perinatal PTSD severity (p=0.004).

Conclusions:

  • Findings suggest that higher perinatal PTSD severity in mothers may be associated with delayed cortical maturation in infants.
  • These results highlight potential neurophysiological consequences of perinatal PTSD on infant development.

Keywords:
InfantLeft anterior temporalMagnetoencephalographyPerinatalPosttraumatic stress disorderTheta power

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