Journal
JOURNAL OF AFFECTIVE DISORDERS
Volume 294, Issue -, Pages 117-127Publisher
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2021.06.069
Keywords
Mother-infant bonding; Lifetime trauma; Depression; Perinatal
Categories
Funding
- National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under the Programme Grants for Applied Research programme (ESMI Programme) [RP-PG-121012002]
- National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)/Wellcome Trust Kings Clinical Research Facility
- NIHR Biomedical Research Centre and Dementia Unit at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
- Kings College London
- NIHR Research Professorship [NIHR-RP-R3-12-011]
- South London Clinical Research Network
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The study found no evidence for a link between maternal lifetime trauma experiences and self-reported bonding difficulties, but an association was found between antenatal depressive symptoms and perceived post-partum bonding impairment.
Background: Interpersonal traumas are common among expectant and new mothers and are found to have considerable impacts on women's mental health. These experiences may disrupt maternal perceptions of the mother-infant relationship, which is essential for healthy infant development, but findings are inconsistent. This study aims to explore associations between lifetime interpersonal traumas and their impact on self-reported mother-infant bonding. Methods: Secondary data analysis of a representative cohort of 453 women attending at a South London ma-ternity service. Lifetime interpersonal trauma experience and its association with self-reported mother-infant bonding (Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire) was assessed in uni-and multivariable linear regressions, the latter adjusted to account for antenatal depressive and posttraumatic symptoms, measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Scale, and key sociodemographic risk factors. Results: Maternal lifetime trauma was not associated with perceived difficulties in mother-infant bonding at three months postnatal; however antenatal depressive symptoms, both with continuous EPDS score (0.33, 95% CI 0.17-0.50, p<0.001) and clinical cut-off >= 13 (4.26, 95% CI 2.02-6.49, p<0.001) were associated with self-reported bonding difficulties. Limitations: The composite trauma measurement did not allow for a comprehensive assessment of individual trauma types. Conclusions: There was no evidence for a link between maternal lifetime trauma experiences and self-reported bonding difficulties. However, an association between antenatal depressive symptoms and perceived post -partum bonding impairment was found. This highlights the importance of identification and treatment of depressive symptoms during pregnancy and offering women support in facilitating a positive mother-infant relationship.
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