Maternal mood and anxiety effects on the fetal nonstress test

Previous studies have suggested that acute mood states may influence levels of fetal activity. Because the fetal nonstress test relies on markers of fetal activity to suggest fetal wellbeing, its interpretation may be affected by maternal mood.

This study sought to determine if there are differences in nonstress test characteristics between pregnant individuals with and without symptoms of mood disorder.

In this prospective cohort study, we recruited pregnant individuals undergoing nonstress test in the third trimester and compared the results of the nonstress test between pregnant individuals with scores above and below the cutoff values on validated screening questionnaires for depression and anxiety symptoms, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7). Demographic information was collected from each participant at the time of recruitment, and medical information was extracted from the electronic medical record.

A total of 68 pregnant individuals were enrolled, 10 (15%) of which screened positive for perinatal mood disorders. There was no significant difference in means of time to reactivity (15.6 [4.8] minutes vs 15.0 [8.0] minutes, P=.77), number of accelerations (0.16/min [0.08] vs 0.16/min [0.10], P>.95), number of fetal movements (17.0 [14.7] vs 19.7 [20.4], P=.62), heart rate baseline (138.0 [7.5] bpm vs 139.2 [9.0] bpm, P=.67) or variability (8.5 [2.5] bpm vs 9.1 (4.3) bpm, P=.51) between pregnant individuals who screen positive for mood disorders and those who did not.

Fetal heart rate patterns are similar in pregnant individuals with and without symptoms of mood disorder. The results provide reassurance that acute symptoms of anxiety and depression do not have significant effects on the fetal nonstress test.