Pregnancy After Perinatal Loss: The Relationship Between Anxiety and Prenatal Attachment

Armstrong, Deborah S.; Hutti, Marianne Hopkins

doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.1998.tb02609.x

Cited by 149 publications

(142 citation statements)

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“…Condon & Corkindale, 1997). The importance of maternal appraisals, and their association with anxiety is also evidenced by research involving women who are pregnant after a previous perinatal loss -it appears that their appraisal of threat (to the current pregnancy) predicts pregnancy anxiety (Cô té-Arsenault, 2007), and levels of anxiety among this population of women are negatively related to prenatal attachment (Armstrong, 2004;Armstrong & Hutti, 1998). While it is perhaps unsurprising that women who appraise greater risk are more anxious and score more poorly on measures of attachment, it is again important within the clinical environment to be aware of maternal appraisals of risk (and their potential incongruence with medical opinion), and subsequent anxiety levels.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal appraisals of risk, coping and prenatal attachment among women hospitalised with pregnancy complications

White

McCorry

Scott-Heyes

et al. 2008

Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Maternal appraisals of risk, coping and prenatal attachment among women hospitalised with pregnancy complications

White

McCorry

Scott-Heyes

et al. 2008

Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology

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“…1,27 Approximately half of mothers report high levels of symptoms of depression, thus placing them at high risk of depression. 28 Reports in the literature show that the prevalence of stress and symptoms of depression and anxiety are higher during pregnancy than during other periods of life, particularly among vulnerable populations. 29 An association between symptoms of anxiety and depression during pregnancy and adverse pregnancy outcomes such as preterm birth and low birth weight has been described in previous publications.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Armstrong and Hutti found greater rates of anxiety during pregnancy among women who had had a previous perinatal loss. 28 Appraising the parents' emotions during a pregnancy subsequent to a perinatal loss may lead to a better understanding of the needs of these families at critical moments. 28 In a study on parents following a perinatal loss or sudden infant death, Vance et al reported that a gradual reduction in the symptoms of depression and anxiety occurred over time.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…28 Appraising the parents' emotions during a pregnancy subsequent to a perinatal loss may lead to a better understanding of the needs of these families at critical moments. 28 In a study on parents following a perinatal loss or sudden infant death, Vance et al reported that a gradual reduction in the symptoms of depression and anxiety occurred over time. However, even 30 months after the loss, the parents continued to have almost twice as much psychological stress as shown by the parents in the control group.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quality of life, depression and anxiety among pregnant women with previous adverse pregnancy outcomes

et al. 2009

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CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Previous adverse pregnancy outcomes (recurrent spontaneous abortion, fetal death, preterm birth or early neonatal death) can affect the quality of life of pregnant women. The objective of this study was to compare the quality of life and the prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression among pregnant women with and without these antecedents. DESIGN AND SETTING:An analytical cross-sectional study was performed in four settings (two high-risk and two low-risk prenatal clinics) in the city of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS:A total of 240 women were interviewed by a single investigator between the 18 th and 24 th weeks of gestation: 120 women with prior adverse pregnancy outcomes (group 1) and 120 women with no such history (group 2), matched according to their numbers of living children. Sociodemographic variables were collected and two questionnaires were used: the Short Form-36 quality-of-life questionnaire and the Depression and Anxiety Scale. RESULTS:The women in group 1 had lower scores in all the items on the quality-of-life questionnaire. Depression and anxiety were more frequent in group 1 (P < 0.0001). An inverse correlation was found between the Short Form-36 domains and anxiety and depression.CONCLUSIONS: Women with histories of recurrent spontaneous abortion, fetal death, preterm birth or early neonatal death seem to have poorer quality of life and more symptoms of anxiety and depression during their subsequent pregnancy, compared with those without such antecedents.RESUMO CONTEXTO E OBJETIVO: O antecedente de resultados gestacionais adversos (aborto espontâneo recorrente, óbito fetal, prematuridade ou óbito neonatal precoce) pode afetar a qualidade de vida das gestantes. O objetivo deste estudo foi comparar a qualidade de vida e a prevalência de sintomas de ansiedade e depressão em gestantes com e sem estes antecedentes. TIPO DE ESTUDO E LOCAL:Um estudo transversal analítico foi realizado em quatro locais (duas clínicas de pré-natal de alto risco e duas de pré-natal de baixo risco), na cidade de Campinas, São Paulo, Brasil.MÉTODOS: Duzentas e quarenta mulheres foram entrevistadas por um único investigador entre 18 e 24 semanas de gestação: 120 tinham antecedentes gestacionais adversos (grupo 1) e 120 não tinham tal história (grupo 2), pareadas por número de filhos vivos. Variáveis sócio-demográficas foram coletadas e dois questionários foram usados: o de qualidade de vida (Questionário Short Form-36) e a Escala de Depressão e Ansiedade. RESULTADOS:As mulheres do grupo 1 obtiveram escores mais baixos em todos os itens do questionário de qualidade de vida. Depressão e ansiedade foram mais frequentes no grupo 1 (P < 0,0001). Foi encontrada uma correlação inversa entre os domínios do Short Form-36 e ansiedade e depressão.CONCLUSÕES: Mulheres com antecedente de aborto espontâneo recorrente, óbito fetal, prematuridade ou óbito neonatal precoce parecem ter pior qualidade de vida e mais sintomas de ansiedade e depressão durante a gestação subsequente quando comparadas c...

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“…Out of these, the most frequently mentioned are the pregnancy specific anxiety (Franche & Mikail, 1999;Geller, Kerns and Klier, 2004;Bergner, Beyer, Klapp & Rauchfuss, 2008) and its effects on prenatal maternal-fetal attachment (Armstrong & Hutti, 1998Armstrong 2004, O'Leary, 2004Tsartsara & Johnson, 2006). It is important here to mention that most of these studies are considering the entire prenatal losses registry, and not just the miscarriages.…”

Section: Your Loss Was Not An Actual Baby Etcmentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological Intervention For Improving Prenatal Attachment Of Pregnant Women With A History Of Previous Miscarriage

Camelia-Vasilica¹

2017

European Proceedings of Social &Amp; Behavioural Sciences

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Given that pregnant women who went through the miscarriage experience during one or more previous pregnancies have difficulties in forming emotional attachments to the fetus during the current pregnancy, development of psychological interventions for improving their maternal-fetal attachment is needed. The aim of this study is to present a psychological intervention centered on the Unifying-Experiential Psychotherapy for improving the prenatal attachment in pregnant women with a history of miscarriage and to investigate its effectiveness. Hence, 32 pregnant women at 10-30 weeks of gestation, who reported miscarriage in previous pregnancies, were divided in two groups: experimental and control group. All participants had completed Romanian version of Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale MFAS) (Cranley, 1981)in the pre-experiment and post-experiment stages. The experimental group members participated in a psychological intervention program, while the control group did not undergo any psychological intervention. The results obtained highlight significant differences in MFAS overall scores, Roletaking and Attributing Characteristics and Intentions to the Fetus subscales scores. Our findings indicate that psychological intervention for pregnant women with a history of miscarriage could be an important factor in improving their maternal-fetal attachment. Even if is is known that MFA increases during pregnancy, one-to-one or group therapy sessions support a stronger and healthier attachment between mother and fetus.

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Pregnancy After Perinatal Loss: The Relationship Between Anxiety and Prenatal Attachment

Cited by 149 publications

References 10 publications

Maternal appraisals of risk, coping and prenatal attachment among women hospitalised with pregnancy complications

Maternal appraisals of risk, coping and prenatal attachment among women hospitalised with pregnancy complications

Quality of life, depression and anxiety among pregnant women with previous adverse pregnancy outcomes

Psychological Intervention For Improving Prenatal Attachment Of Pregnant Women With A History Of Previous Miscarriage

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