Association between parental depressive symptoms and impaired bonding with the infant

Abstract

Impaired bonding with the infant is associated with maternal postpartum depression but has not been investigated extensively in fathers. The primary study aim was to evaluate associations between maternal and paternal depressive symptoms and impaired bonding with their infant. A secondary aim was to determine the associations between parents' marital problems and impaired bonding with the infant. The study is part of a population-based cohort project (UPPSAT) in Uppsala, Sweden. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 6 weeks and 6 months postpartum and the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire at 6 months postpartum were completed by 727 couples. The prevalence of impaired bonding was highest among couples in which both spouses had depressive symptoms. Impaired bonding was associated with higher EPDS scores in both mothers and fathers, as well as with experiencing a deteriorated marital relationship. The association between maternal and paternal impaired bonding and the mothers' and fathers' EPDS scores remained significant even after adjustment for relevant confounding factors. Depressive symptoms at 6 weeks postpartum are associated with impaired bonding with the infant at 6 months postpartum for both mothers and fathers. It is critical to screen for and prevent depressive symptoms in both parents during early parenthood.

Lifestyle factors, self‐reported health and sense of coherence among fathers/partners in relation to risk for depression and anxiety in early pregnancy

“…Furthermore, both paternal and All potential predictors' from Tables 2 and 3 with p-value < 0.2 included in the Logistic regression model. maternal depression can influence the behavioural development of the child (31); for example, they can lead to the increase in affective disorders and child development disorders (14,15). Therefore, this research shows the importance of prioritising the health of both the expectant fathers and mothers.…”

“…Research has shown that paternal/partner depression affects children emotionally and behaviourally (14). Depressive fathers have impact on the bonding to the newborn child (15). Thomas et al (6) found that financial anxiety was also a stress factor for fathers during pregnancy.…”

Strategy for nursing research in Sweden

“…Research example at our Department, Associate Professor Clara Aarts and research group. 5 Ill health and equality of care. Leadership and the organization of nursing care.…”

Emotional Rejection of the Infant: Status of the Concept

“…It is important to distinguish this phenomenon from postpartum depression, even though the two are often associated in clinical samples [73,74], an association that may be exaggerated by the Berkson bias [75]. There is conflicting evidence for the association in the community [76,77,78,79,80,81,82,83].…”