Fetal motor activity and maternal cortisol

DiPietro, Janet A.; Kivlighan, Katie T.; Costigan, Kathleen A.; Laudenslager, Mark L.

doi:10.1002/dev.20389

Cited by 44 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…This finding is consistent with two prior studies [12,13] but contrary to most indicating no significant sex differences in fetal activity [2,[14][15][16][17]. Given that all of these studies were based on samples of less than one hundred while the present study was derived from a sample of more than six and a half thousand, the inconsistency may be attributed to the much greater statistical power in the present study.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…While two of these studies reported that male fetuses were more active than female fetuses [12,13], the majority have indicated that the differences are non-significant [14][15][16][17]. It is important to note that all of these studies were based on samples of less than one hundred pregnant women and that the time during which each woman was monitored with ultra sound were typically less than two hours.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Sex differences in fetal activity and childhood hyperactivity

Ellis¹,

He²

2014

Res J Dev Biol

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Background: Most studies have failed to identify significant sex differences in movement (or activity) during fetal development. However, the sample sizes and lengths of time fetuses were monitored in these studies have been limited. Aim and methods: Using the recollections provided by a sample of 6,546 mothers, this study examines variations in fetal activity levels for every month of pregnancy. Evidence was also sought that fetal activity might beassociated with hyperactivity/ hyperkinesis following birth. Results: By the fourth month of pregnancy, mothers reported that males were significantly more active in the womb than females. Also, fetal activity was positively correlated with hyperactivity following birth, especially for males. Conclusion: Despite numerous prior studies derived from small samples failing to reveal significant sex differences in fetal activity, the present study demonstrates that males are about 10% more active than females during the latter two-thirds of pregnancy and are even more so following birth. Furthermore, even within each gender, fetal activity predicted hyperactivity in childhood, thus indicating that there must be a common biological root for variations in activity levels.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex differences in fetal activity and childhood hyperactivity

Ellis¹,

He²

2014

Res J Dev Biol

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“…The majority of findings relate exposure to elevated maternal cortisol to a neurobehavioral risk profile including greater stress reactivity at birth and infant fussiness in the first months of life (Davis, Waffarn, & Sandman, 2010; de Weerth, van Hees, & Buitelaar, 2003; Werner et al, 2013). In the few fetal studies considering maternal cortisol as a possible influence on fetal development, associations were found between concurrently tested elevations and greater movement at 32–36 gestational weeks (DiPietro et al, 2009) and higher overall FHR at 36–38 weeks (Monk et al, 2004). Using a longitudinal study design, Glynn and Sandman (2012) showed lower cortisol early in pregnancy was associated with precocious development indexed by mounting a motor response to a vibro acoustic stimulus (Glynn & Sandman, 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pregnancy distress gets under fetal skin: Maternal ambulatory assessment & sex differences in prenatal development

Doyle

Werner

Feng

et al. 2015

Developmental Psychobiology

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Prenatal maternal distress is associated with an at-risk developmental profile, yet there is little fetal evidence of this putative in utero process. Moreover, the biological transmission for these maternal effects remains uncertain. In a study of n = 125 pregnant adolescents (ages 14–19), ambulatory assessments of daily negative mood (anger, frustration, irritation, stress), physical activity, blood pressure, heart rate (every 30 min over 24 hr), and salivary cortisol (six samples) were collected at 13–16, 24–27, 34–37 gestational weeks. Corticotropin-releasing hormone, C-reactive protein, and interleukin 6 from blood draws and 20 min assessments of fetal heart rate (FHR) and movement were acquired at the latter two sessions. On average, fetuses showed development in the expected direction (decrease in FHR, increase in SD of FHR and in the correlation of movement and FHR (“coupling”)). Maternal distress characteristics were associated with variations in the level and trajectory of fetal measures, and results often differed by sex. For males, greater maternal 1st and 2nd session negative mood and 2nd session physical activity were associated with lower overall FHR (p <.01), while 1st session cortisol was associated with a smaller increase in coupling (p <.01), and overall higher levels (p = .05)—findings suggesting accelerated development. For females, negative mood, cortisol, and diastolic blood pressure were associated with indications of relatively less advanced and accelerated outcomes. There were no associations between negative mood and biological variables. These data indicate that maternal psychobiological status influences fetal development, with females possibly more variously responsive to different exposures.

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“…DiPietro et al [51] verified, in a sample of 52 mothers and fetuses, assessed at 24, 30, and 36 weeks of gestation, that the fetuses of more emotional women, assessing their lives as more stressful and signalizing more difficulties during pregnancy, were more active, than those of mothers who perceived their pregnancy with positive emotionality. Mediation mechanisms involving stress hormones, the HPA axis and role of the placenta have been proposed to explain the association between maternal psychological symptoms and fetal behavior [83,84].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mother's anxiety and depression and associated risk factors during early pregnancy: effects on fetal growth and activity at 20–22 weeks of gestation

Conde

Figueiredo

Tendais

et al. 2010

Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology

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To examine effects of mother's anxiety and depression and associated risk factors during early pregnancy on fetal growth and activity. Repeated measures of mother's anxiety (State-Anxiety Inventory (STAI-S)) and depression (Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS)) and related socio demographics and substance consumption were obtained at the 1st and 2nd pregnancy trimesters, and fetus' (N = 147) biometric data and behavior was recorded during ultrasound examination at 20-22 weeks of gestation. Higher anxiety symptoms were associated to both lower fetal growth and higher fetal activity. While lower education, primiparity, adolescent motherhood, and tobacco consumption predicted lower fetal growth, coffee intake predicted lower fetal activity. Vulnerability of fetal development to mother's psychological symptoms as well as to other sociodemographic and substance consumption risk factors during early and mid pregnancy is suggested.

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Fetal motor activity and maternal cortisol

Cited by 44 publications

References 47 publications

Sex differences in fetal activity and childhood hyperactivity

Sex differences in fetal activity and childhood hyperactivity

Pregnancy distress gets under fetal skin: Maternal ambulatory assessment & sex differences in prenatal development

Mother's anxiety and depression and associated risk factors during early pregnancy: effects on fetal growth and activity at 20–22 weeks of gestation

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