The effect of pregnancy on maternal cognition

Abstract

To determine whether there are differences in measures of cognitive function between second and third trimester pregnant women compared to non-pregnant controls. This prospective study comprised 40 pregnant and 40 non-pregnant women, 20–40 years old, native-Hebrew speakers who were recruited from the outpatient clinics during a period of nearly 2 years. The patients underwent cognitive and affective evaluation. The performance on the three following tests: difficult and total items of Verbal Paired Associates, the Digit Span—forward and the Naming Objects and Fingers test scores were significantly better among non- pregnant women. All the other test results were similar between the two groups, including the depression scores. On multivariate linear regression analysis, after adjusting for age and years of education , Verbal Paired Associates total score (p = 0.04), and Naming Objects and Fingers (p = 0.01) remained significantly associated with pregnancy, but not Digit Span (p = 0.09). Our study demonstrates an impairment in memory among pregnant women. Furthermore language skills, particularly naming, were also impaired, a finding which has not been previously described.

Research Manuscript "Exploring the Impact of Pregnancy on Cognitive Function: A Comparative Study in a Low-Income Setting"

“…Our study also highlighted the poor language skills of pregnant women in comparison to their nonpregnant counterparts. To the best of our knowledge, only Guilia Barda et al's study [19] had previously examined language skills as a variable in assessing cognition among pregnant and nonpregnant women, and their ndings were consistent with ours.…”

Fear of Reintegration and Maternal Guilt in Working Women-Post Maternity Leave

“…10 out of 12 mothers doubted that they have forgotten their roles and job responsibilities after their maternity leave. This phenomenon can be understood by the study done by (Barda et. al., 2021), in which he mentioned that hormonal changes or lifestyle changes, postpartum period and sleep patterns, could be the cause of memory loss at such a crucial time in a woman's life.…”

From Conception to Delivery: A Comprehensive Review of Thyroid Disorders and Their Far-Reaching Impact on Feto-Maternal Health

“…While animal research overwhelmingly supports enhanced memory function during pregnancy, cognitive performance seems to be diminished rather than enhanced in humans. Changes in brain plasticity during pregnancy involve areas implicated in maternal caregiving, reward/motivation, salience/threat detection, emotional regulation, and social cognition, such as the ability to empathize with and infer the baby's mental state [62].…”