A systemic review of maternal wellbeing and its relationship with maternal fetal attachment and early postpartum bonding

Abstract

Background An emerging body of literature suggests there is a relationship between a pregnant woman’s psychological wellbeing and the development of maternal-fetal attachment (MFA) and early postpartum bonding. The nature of this relationship is not well understood because of the limited theoretical framework surrounding the construct of MFA and variations in study methods and data collection points. In this systematic review, we synthesize the published literature to determine the nature of the relationship from the antenatal to early postnatal period and to provide recommendations for future research and clinical practice. Method Using the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) approach, four electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed empirical studies, published in English. Articles were considered for inclusion if data was collected on at least one domain of maternal wellbeing/mental health and MFA during pregnancy or MFA during pregnancy and the mother-infant relationship during the early postpartum period (up to 12 weeks). No date parameters were applied to the search strategy. The review was registered with PROPSERO (registration number: CRD42018096174). Results 25 studies examining maternal mental health and MFA/postpartum bonding were selected for inclusion in this review. Key findings identified from the review were: a need to validate existing mental health measures or develop new measures specific for use in antenatal populations; inconsistencies in data collection points throughout pregnancy and postpartum; a lack of consensus about the construct of MFA and the way it is assessed; and a continued focus on postpartum outcomes. Conclusion Scientific gaps remain in our understanding of the relationship between maternal mental health and both MFA and postpartum bonding which limit our theoretical understanding of the MFA construct. Recommendations for future research are to employ prospective longitudinal designs that span the full pregnancy and postpartum period, and for consistency in the terminology and methodology used when considering MFA. A re-focus of research attention on the theory behind MFA will allow a richer and more holistic account of the emerging relationship between mother and baby.

Anxiety, Prenatal Attachment, and Depressive Symptoms in Women with Diabetes in Pregnancy

“…McNamara et al, in a recent review on the relation between maternal wellbeing and maternal fetal attachment, observed that depression in the antenatal periods was associated with lower prenatal attachment. Moreover, the closer the prenatal attachment of a mother to her unborn child, the fewer symptoms of depression she reports during the last term of pregnancy and postpartum, demonstrating that maternal mood may negatively impact a mother's ability to bond with her baby during pregnancy [75]. Our result highlights the importance of a previous history of anxiety disorder in moderating the relation between prenatal attachment and depressive symptoms in GDM patients.…”

Adesão à consulta puerperal: facilitadores e barreiras

“…[9][10] The interviewed women were in the age group considered as 'fertile age', as well as puerperal women who participated in other national and international studies. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] However, the mean age (25 years old) was lower than the one found in studies conducted in the southern region of the country 11 , in the city of São Paulo 20 , in Sweden 14 , United States 16 and Poland. 19 Although they were below the age of other studies, no associations were found between adherence and maternal age.…”

Mediating role of prenatal depression in attachment and maternal-fetal attachment in women who receive prenatal education

“…Our results revealed the relationship between attachment avoidance and the prenatal depression score and their effects on the degree of emotional communication and interaction between the mother and the fetus, further providing a basis for understanding the development of maternal-fetal relationships. In addition, prenatal depression symptoms were found to be negatively correlated with prenatal MFA [31,32].…”