Childhood adversity and the maternal psychological-inflammatory profile during pregnancy

Abstract

Increased proinflammatory cytokines during pregnancy are linked to maternal depressive risk and poor birth outcomes. Maternal exposure to childhood adversity and poverty may intensify depressive and inflammatory risk and contribute to disparity in birth outcomes. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship among maternal childhood adversity and prenatal levels of stress, depression, and proinflammatory cytokines within the context of neonatal birth outcomes. During the second and third trimesters of pregnancy, women provided blood to measure circulating TNF-alpha, and completed assessments of childhood adversity, perceived stress, depression, and social support. Existing poverty, per federal guidelines, was calculated. Correlations among variables were evaluated and moderation analysis explored interaction effects. Findings revealed that women with greater exposure to childhood adversity reported greater perceived stress and depressive symptoms. Also, women reporting greater depressive symptoms had higher plasma TNF-alpha levels. Moderation analysis for interaction effects revealed that women exposed to both childhood adversity and poverty had higher circulating TNF-alpha levels. Both greater childhood adversity exposure and higher circulating TNF-alpha levels associated with lower infant birth weight. Further, exposure to childhood adversity was associated with premature delivery; this association was moderated (attenuated) by higher levels of social support. Results suggest that maternal childhood adversity is associated with greater psychological morbidity during pregnancy and poorer neonatal outcomes, emphasizing the need to assess maternal childhood adversity in prenatal psychosocial screening.