Influence of in utero exposure to maternal depression and natural disaster‐related stress on infant temperament at 6 months: The children of Superstorm Sandy

Abstract

The study examined the effects of in-utero exposure to maternal depression and Superstorm Sandy, a hurricane that hit metropolitan New York in 2012, on infant temperament at 6 months. Temperament was assessed using the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised. Maternal depression was measured by the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. The main effects and the interaction of maternal depression and Sandy exposure on infant temperament were examined using Multivariable General Linear Model. Results show that prenatal maternal depression was associated with lower emotion-regulation and greater distress. Stratification and interaction analyses suggested that the adverse effects of prenatal maternal depression on problematic temperament were amplified by in-utero Sandy exposure. The study underscores the importance of providing prenatal screening and treatment for maternal depression during pregnancy, while simultaneously identifying high-risk families who may have suffered from disaster-related traumas in order to provide necessary services. As the frequency of natural disasters may increase owing to climate change, it is important to understand the consequences of in-utero stress on child development and to formulate plans for early identification.

Maternal and paternal depression and anxiety and offspring infant negative affectivity: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…We therefore meta-analysed unadjusted results. While associations remained after adjustment for baseline confounders in the few studies with adjustments (Erickson, 2018;Nomura et al, 2014Nomura et al, , 2019Spry et al, 2019;Zhang et al, 2017), potential for confounding remains. Thus, we describe meaningful patterns of associations rather than draw causal conclusions (Hernán et al, 2015).…”

“…A further possible explanation is confounding. In the few studies with adjusted analyses, associations remained after adjustment for demographic and substance use factors (Erickson, 2018;Nomura et al, 2014Nomura et al, , 2019Spry et al, 2019;Zhang et al, 2017). Nonetheless, potential for confounding remains.…”

The Impact of Climate Change on Mental Health: A Systematic Descriptive Review

“…The damage suffered by health care infrastructure and the interruption of public health service due to hurricanes leads to an increase in serious illness, injuries, disability, and death (84). As in extreme events, there are health issues that emerged or worsened after hurricanes due to psychological stress: increase in rates of cardiovascular diseases (85), prenatal maternal stress and depression, infants more likely to experience anxiety, fear and sadness, and less responsive to pleasant stimuli (86), lack of insurance possibly increasing chronic illnesses with no access to medical care during a disaster (87,88), population exposures to contaminated floodwaters (88). Many people experienced PTSD, stress, depression, anxiety (87), and suicide (79).…”

The Association between Delivery during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Immediate Postpartum Maternal Cognitive Function

“…A study by Nomura et al evaluated the influence of in utero exposure to both maternal risk for depression and Hurricane Sandy on infant temperament [ 32 ]. When maternal risk for depression was assessed using the EPDS, their analysis showed interaction effects between prenatal maternal depression and Hurricane Sandy exposure, where prenatal maternal depression was associated with greater levels in activity, distress, approach, and shorter duration of attention of infants only when they were also exposed to Hurricane Sandy in utero [ 32 ]. These findings may suggest that maternal depression could bear additional negative effects on offspring development in the context of in utero exposure to a natural disaster.…”

“…Nevertheless, being a non-diagnostic tool, the possibility that the EPDS fails to distinguish between the true prevalence of maternal depression in both groups cannot be ruled out. Even if there is no difference in the true prevalence of maternal depression in both groups, when considering possible interaction effects such as those described by Nomura et al, the apparent decline in subjective cognitive function could be seen as an aggravation of maternal depression consequences that results from its coincidence with a large-scale crisis [ 32 ].…”