Archives of Women's Mental Health最新文献

Purpose: Given the lack of available and effective interventions to address the detrimental consequences of perinatal exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) on maternal mental health, and reported very low access to IPV-related mental health services in Mexico, we examined the feasibility and efficacy of a culturally adapted, virtual, brief group psychosocial intervention designed to improve maternal mental and physical health and reduce IPV revictimization for pregnant women exposed to IPV. In this pilot randomized controlled trial, we evaluated maternal outcomes after participation in the Pregnant Moms' Empowerment Program (PMEP) in Mexico.

Methods: Women were recruited from social service agencies and health centers in the community, as well as social media advertisements that targeted pregnant women living in Mexico. Women were randomized to receive the intervention (n = 43) or a control condition (i.e., referrals to local services; n = 47). Women completed questionnaires at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-months postpartum that assessed their exposure to IPV, depression, posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), physical health symptoms, and resilience, as these were our primary outcomes of interest. Women in the intervention condition participated in ten, 60-minute virtual group sessions. Multilevel models were used to evaluate effects of treatment over time.

Results: On average, women in the intervention condition participated in six treatment sessions. Compared to the control group, intervention participants reported significantly fewer symptoms of depression at both the post-intervention and 3-month postpartum assessments (d = 0.64, d = 0.59, respectively) and fewer physical health symptoms at the post-intervention assessment (d = 0.77). Trend-level improvements in PTSS scores for post-intervention (d = 0.56) and 3-months postpartum (d = 0.56), as well as physical health at 3-months postpartum (d = 0.59), were also observed. There were no group differences in exposure to IPV over time.

Conclusion: The current study adds to the evidence base for the PMEP intervention while also expanding it to a new cultural context by suggesting promise of its clinical utility in targeting Mexican women's perinatal depression, PTSS, and physical health symptoms.

Purpose: Psychosocial risk factors are frequently present in pregnant women and are associated with adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes. Professional guidelines recommend early detection of vulnerability and provision of multidisciplinary care, including an integrated care plan for pregnant women with social factors, such as residing in deprived areas, teenage pregnancy, and psychiatric illness. However, to date, such approach is impeded by lack of data on co-occurrence of vulnerability. Therefore, we aim to describe co-occurrence of psychiatric illness, social factors or substance use during pregnancy.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of 1002 pregnant women referred for evaluation by a multidisciplinary team because of psychiatric illness, social factors or substance use in a university hospital in a large city in the Netherlands. Data from medical charts between January 2017 and May 2022 were extracted and analyzed by univariate and bivariate analysis.

Results: Multi-domain vulnerability was present in 83% of women and most frequently involved the following patterns: psychiatric illness with social factors and chronic physical illness (24%), psychiatric illness with social factors (14%), social factors with chronic physical illness (13%) and psychiatric illness with chronic physical illness (12%). Single-domain vulnerability was present in 17% of women, involving most frequently social factors (9%) and psychiatric illness (8%).

Conclusion: The majority of women with psychiatric illness, social factors or substance use have multi-domain vulnerability. There is a need for a novel approach to care to address vulnerability in pregnant women.

Purpose: There is limited high-quality evidence about perinatal mental health among women with gestational diabetes. We aimed to assess the risks and longitudinal changes in anxiety, depression, and health-related quality of life comparing women with gestational diabetes and those without among a contemporary cohort of pregnant women.

Methods: Prospective cohort study of participants in the GEMS Trial. Women with a singleton pregnancy were eligible if they had a 75-g diagnostic oral glucose-tolerance test between 24 and 32 weeks' gestation, provided written informed consent, and completed questionnaires about anxiety, depression, and health-related quality of life at the study time points.

Results: There were no differences in risk for anxiety (RR 1.13, 95% CI 0.86, 1.49; p = 0.39) or depression (RR 1.08, 95% CI 0.78, 1.50; p = 0.64) between the two groups at 36 weeks' gestation or 6 months postpartum [anxiety: (RR 1.21, 95% CI 0.90, 1.63; p = 0.21); depression: (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.55, 1.28; p = 0.43]. However, at 36 weeks' gestation participants with gestational diabetes reported better physical functioning, and at 6 months postpartum, better mental functioning (mean difference (MD) in scores 1.28, 95% CI 0.25, 2.30; p = 0.01) although worse physical functioning (MD -2.99, 95% CI -3.90, -2.07; p = < 0.001) compared to participants without.

Conclusion: The risk for poor mental health during the perinatal period does not differ importantly among women diagnosed and treated for gestational diabetes compared to the general pregnant population.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of the employment situation on the anxiety levels and research self-efficacy of graduate students, with a particular focus on female graduate students. The study aims to understand how the use of AIGC tools, which has become more frequent among those with lower research self-efficacy, affects anxiety and research resilience. Additionally, the research explores the role of the mentoring relationship in influencing the psychological and academic experiences of female graduate students.

Method: The research involved 1164 female master's and doctoral students and employed a moderated chain mediation model. This model was constructed based on social cognitive theory and Habermas interaction theory to analyze the relationships between research self-efficacy, mobile phone dependence, anxiety, and research resilience. Data was collected and empirically analyzed using SPSS 26.0, a statistical software, to examine the proposed relationships and the moderating effect of the mentoring relationship.

Result: The findings revealed that scientific research self-efficacy positively influences research resilience among female graduate students. Additionally, mobile phone dependence and anxiety were found to play a chain mediating role between self-efficacy and research resilience. The study also discovered that the mentoring relationship negatively moderated the effects of mobile phone dependence and anxiety on these students.

Conclusion: Based on the results, the study concludes that mentors and academic administrators should consider the research capabilities and interests of students when assigning research tasks. It is recommended to establish a flight instructor mentorship system that maximizes the strengths of each mentor to support students, especially those with suboptimal mentor-mentee relationships. This approach could help in providing positive guidance and improving the research resilience of female graduate students who are more susceptible to anxiety and mobile phone dependence.

Purpose: This study investigated whether maternal antenatal attachment (MAA) in the third trimester was associated with self-reported problematic infant crying at eight weeks postnatally and explored links with postnatal depressive symptoms.

Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted with 1287 pregnant participants in Danish general practice. MAA was measured using the Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale (MAAS) in the third trimester. Both postnatal depressive symptoms and infant crying problems were assessed eight weeks postnatally, using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and maternal reports, respectively.

Results: Low MAAS quality scores in the third trimester were initially associated with a 51% increased risk of reporting problematic infant crying at eight weeks, but this effect disappeared after adjusting for physical and mental health variables (e.g., chronic disease, anxiety, and depression symptoms) during pregnancy. No significant effects were found for MAAS intensity or total score. Low MAAS quality and overall MAAS scores were associated with an increased risk of scoring above cutoff on the EPDS. High levels of postnatal depressive symptoms at eight weeks significantly increased the likelihood of reporting problematic infant crying. Low MAAS scores combined with high levels of postnatal depressive symptoms did not increase the risk of problematic infant crying compared to low levels of depressive symptoms with low MAAS scores.

Conclusions: Our findings highlight the importance of considering maternal mental health when parents report infant crying problems postnatally. Furthermore, our results demonstrate that poor MAA in pregnancy is not necessarily linked with parental report of problematic infant crying after birth.

Purpose: Although many women experience obsessive-compulsive symptoms during the perinatal period, the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) has not yet been psychometrically evaluated in this population. This study examined the internal consistency, convergent and divergent validity, and factor structure of the YBOCS among pregnant women.

Methods: 256 Women who were 20 to 24 weeks pregnant completed the clinician-administered YBOCS and Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) along with a series of self-report questionnaires including the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Perinatal Anxiety Screening Scale (PASS) and Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory-Revised (OCI-R).

Results: Internal consistency of the YBOCS was excellent, and there were strong inter-scale correlations between the YBOCS Total Score, YBOCS Obsessions and Compulsions Severity Scales. The YBOCS demonstrated good known-groups validity differentiating women with and without OCD. Convergent validity with the OCI-R was demonstrated while relations with divergent validity were more mixed.

Conclusion: The YBOCS possesses strong psychometric properties in pregnant women.

Background: Wars, in addition to causing death and destruction, have a negative impact on mental health, especially on perinatal women. The literature has identified psychological trauma as one of the most prevalent mental health issues associated with wars, but few studies have summarized how to assess, prevent, or treat this problem in perinatal women. To address this gap, the purpose of this study is to provide a narrative review of the current state of assessment, prevention, and treatment interventions of trauma among perinatal women living in war conditions or displaced as a result of a war.

Method: A literature search was performed in different research databases (e.g., Medline, PsycInfo). The search terms include a combination of trauma and stressor-related disorders and focused on diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.

Results: Most of the results were related to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) more than acute stress disorder, although there are not many assessments, and interventions (prevention or treatment) dedicated specifically to perinatal women affected by war conditions.

Conclusion: Research in this area is still scarce. Recommendations for evidence-based practices in assessment and prevention and treatment interventions and future directions in research and clinical practice are provided.

Highlights: • The literature on trauma in perinatal women is sparse, and especially among perinatal women living in conditions of war. • This paper presents a narrative review of evidence-based assessment and treatment for perinatal women victims of war who experience trauma.