BackgroundPregnancy and the transition to parenthood are major adjustment periods within a family. Existing studies have asked parents, retrospectively, about their experience of antenatal education, mainly focusing on women. We sought to address this gap by asking first-time mothers and their partners about how they could be better supported during the antenatal period, particularly in relation to the transition to parenthood and parenting skills.MethodsPurposive sampling was used to recruit 24 nulliparous women with a range of ages from two healthcare organisations in South-West England, 20 of whom had partners. Recruitment took place antenatally at around 28 weeks gestation. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken at home in the last trimester of pregnancy and between 3–4 months postpartum. Content analysis of the interview data was undertaken.ResultsSeveral common themes emerged from both the ante- and postnatal data, including support mechanisms, information and antenatal education, breastfeeding, practical baby-care and relationship changes. Knowledge about the transition to parenthood was poor. Women generally felt well supported, especially by female relatives and, for those who attended them, postnatal groups. This was in contrast to the men who often only had health professionals and work colleagues to turn to. The men felt very involved with their partners' pregnancy but excluded from antenatal appointments, antenatal classes and by the literature that was available. Parents had been unaware of, and surprised at, the changes in the relationship with their partners. They would have liked more information on elements of parenting and baby care, relationship changes and partners' perspectives prior to becoming parents.ConclusionMany studies and policy documents have highlighted the paucity of parents' preparation for parenthood. This study has indicated the need for an improvement in parents' preparation for parenthood, the importance of including fathers in antenatal education and that inadequate preparation remains a concern to both women and their partners.This paper identifies several avenues for action and further research to improve both new parents' experience of antenatal education and their preparation for parenthood.

Adequately preparing new fathers for parenthood in advance of the birth of their baby is important, and healthcare professionals can contribute to this by involving and supporting new fathers. Further study is needed to explore the role of fathers in antenatal education and the types of interventions that are effective in improving their early experiences of parenthood. The study needs to be repeated with fathers from black and ethnic minority groups.

Objective Postpartum depression in mothers is associated with developmental problems in their children. Many women who are depressed following childbirth are also depressed during pregnancy. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between maternal depressive symptoms during pregnancy and child development at 18 months of age.Design A prospective cohort study, Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children.Setting The former county of Avon, southwest England.Population All pregnant women in the defined area with delivery dates between April 1991 and December 1992, 9244 women and their children.Methods Data were collected antenatally, at 18 and 32 weeks of gestation and at 8 weeks and 8 months postnatally, through postal questionnaires, including a self-report measure of depression (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale [EPDS]). By the time their child was 18 months old, women completed five further questionnaires about their children's health and development.Main outcome measure Child development at 18 months using a modified Denver Developmental Screening Test (modified DDST).Results Applying the standard 12/13 cutoff, 1565 (14%) women were depressed antenatally but not at either time-points postnatally. Employing the modified DDST, 893 (9%) children were developmentally delayed at 18 months of age. Persistent depression (EPDS ‡ 10 at both time-points) is associated with developmental delay (adjusted OR 1.34, 95% CI 1.11-1.62). Applying the 12/13 and 14/15 cutoffs gave similar results. After further adjustment for postnatal depression, the effect sizes were slightly attenuated.Conclusions These findings highlight the importance of depression in pregnancy. Some effects on child development attributed to postpartum depression are caused in part by depressive symptoms during pregnancy.

IntroductionAn increasing number of studies have found that girls in low-income settings miss or struggle at school during menstruation if they are unable to manage their menstrual hygiene effectively. This study explores the menstrual hygiene practices and knowledge of girls at rural government primary schools in the Rukungiri district in Uganda and assesses the extent to which poor menstrual hygiene management (MHM) affects their education.MethodsA self-administered questionnaire was completed by schoolgirls in six government-run primary schools in the Rukungiri district. Focus groups were held with girls from each school and semi-structured interviews were conducted with headteachers and female teachers from the participating schools. A toilet assessment was also conducted in each school.ResultsOne hundred and forty schoolgirls completed the questionnaire. The girls reported a lack of access to adequate resources, facilities and accurate information to manage their menstrual hygiene effectively at school. They reported that, as a result, during menstruation they often struggle at school or miss school. Eighty-six girls (61.7%) reported missing school each month for menstrual-related reasons (mean 1.64, range 0-10, SD. 1.84).ConclusionIt is common for girls who attend government-run primary schools in the Rukungiri district to miss school or struggle in lessons during menstruation because they do not have access to the resources, facilities, or information they need to manage for effective MHM. This is likely to have detrimental effects on their education and future prospects. A large-scale study is needed to explore the extent of this issue.

Overt diabetes mellitus during pregnancy carries a significantly increased risk of adverse perinatal outcomes, but whether this is also true of less severe maternal hyperglycemia, or "gestational diabetes," remains uncertain. The Hyperglycemia and Adverse Pregnancy Outcome (HAPO) study was planned to clarify the risk, if any, associated with less marked maternal glucose intolerance than is associated with overt diabetes. A standard oral glucose tolerance test using a 75-g dose of glucose was carried out at 24-32 weeks' gestation (target date: 28 weeks) in 25,505 pregnant women aged 18 and over at 15 centers in nine countries. Patient information remained blinded for 23,316 women whose fasting plasma glucose level did not exceed 105 mg/dL (5.8 mmol/L), and whose 2-hour plasma glucose was 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or less.For women with blinded data, adjusted odds ratios (ORs) were calculated for adverse pregnancy outcomes associated with a 1-SD (standard deviation) increase in fasting plasma glucose (6.9 mg/dL or 0.4 mmol/L); a 1-SD increase in the 1-hour plasma glucose (30.9 mg/dL or 1.7 mmol/L); and a 1-SD increase in the 2-hour plasma glucose (23.5 mg/dL or 1.3 mmol/L). The respective ORs for birth weight above the 90 th percentile were 1.38 (95% confidence interval,