Maternal Mental Disorder Research Articles

Maternal mental disorders and neonatal outcomes: Danish population-based cohort study.

Previous studies have indicated associations between maternal mental disorders and adverse birth outcomes; however, these studies mainly focus on certain types of mental disorders, rather than the whole spectrum. We aimed to conduct a broad study examining all maternal mental disorder types and adverse neonatal outcomes which is needed to provide a more complete understanding of the associations. We included 1 132 757 liveborn singletons born between 1997 and 2015 in Denmark. We compared children of mothers with a past (>2 years prior to conception; n = 48 646), recent (2 years prior to conception and during pregnancy; n = 15 899) or persistent (both past and recent; n = 10 905) diagnosis of any mental disorder, with children of mothers with no mental disorder diagnosis before the index delivery (n = 1 057 307). We also considered different types of mental disorders. We calculated odds ratios and 95% CIs of low birthweight, preterm birth, small for gestational age, low Apgar score, Caesarean delivery and neonatal death. Odds ratios for children exposed to past, recent and persistent maternal mental disorders suggested an increased risk for almost all adverse neonatal outcomes. Estimates were highest for children in the 'persistent' group for all outcomes, with the exception of the association between persistent maternal mental disorders and neonatal death (odds ratio 0.96, 0.62-1.48). Our study provides evidence for increased risk of multiple adverse neonatal outcomes among children of mothers with mental disorders, highlighting the need for close monitoring and support for women with mental disorders.

Congressional briefing a call to action in addressing maternal MH suicide

Approximately 20% of the perinatal population will suffer from a maternal mental health disorder, but less than 20% of the perinatal population ever receives mental health treatment, attendees heard during a congressional briefing on maternal health and suicide in the perinatal population held on Sept. 10, on World Suicide Prevention Day.

Prenatal maternal PTSD as a risk factor for offspring ADHD: A register-based Swedish cohort study of 553 766 children and their mothers.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is highly heritable, though environmental factors also play a role. Prenatal maternal stress is suggested to be one such factor, including exposure to highly distressing events that could lead to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The aim of this study is to investigate whether prenatal maternal PTSD is associated with offspring ADHD. A register-based retrospective cohort study linking 553766 children born in Sweden during 2006-2010 with their biological parents. Exposure: Prenatal PTSD. Outcome: Offspring ADHD. Logistic regression determined odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for ADHD in the offspring. Adjustments were made for potential covariates, including single parenthood and possible indicators of heredity measured as parental ADHD and maternal mental disorders other than PTSD. Subpopulations, excluding children with indicators of heredity, were investigated separately. In the crude results, including all children, prenatal PTSD was associated with offspring ADHD (OR: 1.79, 95% CI: 1.37-2.34). In children with indicators of heredity, the likelihood was partly explained by it. Among children without indicators of heredity, PTSD was associated with offspring ADHD (OR: 2.32, 95% CI: 1.30-4.14), adjusted for confounders. Prenatal maternal PTSD is associated with offspring ADHD regardless of indicators of heredity, such as parental ADHD or maternal mental disorder other than PTSD. The association is partly explained by heredity and socioeconomic factors. If replicated in other populations, preferably using a sibling design, maternal PTSD could be identified as a risk factor for ADHD.

Domestic violence patterns in postpartum women who delivered during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To longitudinally assess domestic violence (DV) during the postpartum period, identifying types, patterns and determinants of DV, according to mothers' reports in Fortaleza, Brazil. Data from the Iracema-COVID cohort study interviewed at home mothers who gave birth in the first wave of COVID-19, at 18 and 24 months after birth. Patterns of reported DV were classified as follows: no DV, interrupted DV, started DV and persistent DV. Adjusted multinomial logistic regressions were used to assess factors associated with persistent DV. DV was reported by 19 and 24% of the mothers at 18 and 24 months postpartum, respectively, a 5 percentage points increase. Persistent DV was present in 11% of the households in the period. The most frequent forms of DV were verbal aggression, reported by 17-20% of the mothers at 18 and 24 months, respectively; drunkenness or use of drugs at home, present in 3-5% of the households; physical aggression, reported by 1.2-1.6% of the mothers. Households with two or more forms of DV increased from 2 to 12% in the period. Adjusted factors associated with persistent DV were maternal common mental disorder, family headed by the mother and head of family's poor schooling. Food insecurity was associated with starting DV. Prevalence of DV was considerably high in the postpartum period. DV prevention policies should rely on improving care to women's mental health; preventing food insecurity; and fostering the educational level of young people of both sexes.

Persistent Maternal Mental Health Disorders and Toddler Neurodevelopment at 18 Months: Longitudinal Follow-up of a Low-Income South African Cohort.

One of the biggest threats to early childhood development in Africa is poor maternal mental health. The present study reports on the relationships between clinical diagnoses of persistent maternal mental health disorders (at 3- and/or 6- and 18-month post-term age) and toddler neurodevelopment at 18 months of age. Eighty-three mother-toddler dyads from low socio-economic status settings in Cape Town, South Africa, were included. At the 3-, 6- and 18-month postnatal visits, clinician-administered structured diagnostic assessments were carried out according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-V (DSM-V) criteria. Toddler neurodevelopment at 18 months corrected age was assessed with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID-III). No significant differences (p > 0.05) were found between toddlers with exposure to persistent mood or psychotic disorders in the different BSID-III domains compared to toddlers with no exposure. Toddlers exposed to persistent comorbid anxiety and mood disorders scored significantly higher on the cognitive (p = 0.049), motor (p = 0.013) and language (p = 0.041) domains and attained significantly higher fine motor (p = 0.043) and gross motor (p = 0.041) scaled scores compared to toddlers with no maternal mental health disorder exposure. Future investigations should focus on the role of protective factors to explain the pathways through which maternal mental health status is associated with positive toddler neurodevelopmental outcomes.

CO60 Maternal Mental Health Disorders May Increase Odds of Adverse Intrauterine and Birth Outcomes

Congenital heart defects (CHD) affect approximately 40,000 births per year in the United States. Various combinations of genetic and secondary contributors have been proposed, and researchers continue to explore additional predictors of CHD causation. This study aimed to determine the relationship between maternal mental health disorder (MMHD) history and the incidence of abnormalities in fetal heart rate or rhythm as well as the incidence of stillbirth.

Perinatal outcomes of Aboriginal women with mental health disorders.

Maternal mental disorders have been associated with adverse perinatal outcomes such as low birthweight and preterm birth, although these links have been examined rarely among Australian Aboriginal populations. We aimed to evaluate the association between maternal mental disorders and adverse perinatal outcomes among Aboriginal births. We used whole population-based linked data to conduct a retrospective cohort study (N = 38,592) using all Western Australia singleton Aboriginal births (1990-2015). Maternal mental disorders were identified based on the International Classification of Diseases diagnoses and grouped into six broad diagnostic categories. The perinatal outcomes evaluated were preterm birth, small for gestational age, perinatal death, major congenital anomalies, foetal distress, low birthweight and 5-minute Apgar score. We employed log-binomial/-Poisson models to calculate risk ratios and 95% confidence intervals. After adjustment for sociodemographic factors and pre-existing medical conditions, having a maternal mental disorder in the five years before the birth was associated with adverse perinatal outcomes, with risk ratios (95% confidence intervals) ranging from 1.26 [1.17, 1.36] for foetal distress to 2.00 [1.87, 2.15] for low birthweight. We found similar associations for each maternal mental illness category and neonatal outcomes, with slightly stronger associations when maternal mental illnesses were reported within 1 year rather than 5 years before birth and for substance use disorder. This large population-based study demonstrated an increased risk of several adverse birth outcomes among Aboriginal women with mental disorders. Holistic perinatal care, treatment and support for women with mental disorders may reduce the burden of adverse birth outcomes.

Burden of mental, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders in the Finnish most preterm children: a national register study

Etiologies and the whole picture in childhood mental, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders related to gestational age are unclear. This study included all Finnish children (N = 341,632) born between January 1, 2001, and December 31, 2006, whose data including their mothers (N = 241,284) were collected from national registers. Children with unclear gestational age (GA) (N = 1245), severe congenital malformations (N = 11,746), and moderate/severe/undefined cognitive impairment (N = 1140), and those who died during the perinatal period (N = 599) were excluded. The main outcome was the prevalence of mental and behavioral disorders (International Classification of Disorders) at 0 − 12 years of age in association with GA, adjusted for gender and prenatal variables. Out of all included (N = 326,902) children 16.6% (N = 54,270) were diagnosed to have any mental health disorder at 0 − 12 years. Adjusted Odd Ratio (OR) were for any disorder in preterm (< 37 weeks) 1.37 [1.28 − 1.46] and 4.03 [3.08 − 5.26] in extreme preterm (≤ 28 weeks) versus term born children, p < 0.05. The lower the GA at birth, the higher the risk for multiple disorders and earlier onset of disorder, p < 0.05. Adjusted ORs were for male/female 1.94 [1.90 − 1.99], maternal mental health disorder (yes/not) 1.99 [1.92 − 2.07], and smoking during pregnancy (yes/not) 1.58 [1.54 − 1.62], and these risks were more common in preterm versus term born children (p < 0.05). Extreme early birth was a strong risk factor per se for any or multiple and early shown mental health disorders. Other risk factors for mental health accumulated to preterm children.

Developing an obstetric care screening tool to improve social support access for pregnant women: A prospective cohort study.

This study aimed to develop an efficient interview sheet during pregnancy and screening tool to identify pregnant women needing social support at obstetric institutions. Moreover, we investigate the perinatal factors associated with the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale (EPDS). This prospective cohort study was conducted at three medical institutions that commonly encounter cases with social issues. Pregnant women were assessed using an interview sheet at the first visit (n = 678), at approximately 28 weeks gestation (n = 495), 36 weeks gestation (n = 296), and the postpartum period (n = 822). We investigated the important items identified on the new screening questionnaire (NEW interview sheets) for women needing social support. The items on the interview sheet were scored by multiple linear regression analysis, and the cutoff values were calculated using the receiver operating characteristic curve. The association between perinatal factors and EPDS was assessed using multiple logistic regression analyses. The study included 166 cases for which all NEW interview sheets for all periods were available. NEW interview sheets and stepwise screening tools during the first and second trimester were developed in which 2.5% of pregnant women were identified as requiring social support, respectively. The factors associated with EPDS ≧ 9 were "Women who felt confused/troubled or did not feel anything to be pregnant" (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 6.51, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.62-26.15), "Maternal mental disorder" (aOR 4.38; CI 1.06-18.10), "Consultation request at first visit" (aOR 3.22; CI 1.09-9.45), and "Women who have difficulty or anxiety about pregnancy during the second trimester" (aOR 3.14; CI 1.29-7.67). We created the NEW interview sheets and screening tools during the first and the second trimester. Future studies are needed to validate these screening tools.

Gestational age acceleration is associated with epigenetic biomarkers of prenatal physiologic stress exposure

BackgroundPhysiological maternal stress response, such as imbalance in the glucocorticoid pathway and immune system seems to be mediated by DNA methylation (DNAm) and might translate intrauterine stress exposures into phenotypic changes in a sex-specific manner. DNAm in specific sites can also predict newborn gestational age and gestational age acceleration (GAA). GAA occurs when the predicted biological age is higher than the chronological age. In adults, poor health outcomes related to this deviance are well documented and raise questions for the interpretation and prediction in early stages of life. Boys seem to be more vulnerable to intrauterine stress exposure than girls; however, the mechanisms of adaptive sex-specific responses are still unclear. We hypothesize that intrauterine stress exposure is associated with GAA and could be different in boys and girls if inflammatory or glucocorticoid pathways exposure is considered.ResultsUsing the Western Region Birth Cohort (ROC—São Paulo, Brazil) (n = 83), we calculated DNAm age and GAA from cord blood samples. Two epigenetic risk scores were calculated as an indirect proxy for low-grade inflammation (i-ePGS) and for glucocorticoid exposure (GES). Multivariate linear regression models were applied to investigate associations of GAA with prenatal exposures. The i-ePGS and GES were included in different models with the same co-variates considering sex interactions. The first multivariate model investigating inflammatory exposure (adj. R2 = 0.31, p = < 0.001) showed that GAA was positively associated with i-ePGS (CI, 0.26–113.87, p = 0.049) and negative pregnancy-related feelings (CI, 0.04–0.48 p = 0.019). No sex interaction was observed. The second model investigating glucocorticoid exposure (adj. R2 = 0.32, p = < 0.001) showed that the higher was the GAA was associated with a lower the lower was the GES in girls (CI, 0.04–2.55, p = 0.044). In both models, maternal self-reported mental disorder was negatively associated with GAA.ConclusionPrenatal epigenetic score of exposure to low-grade inflammatory was a predictor of GAA for both sexes. Glucocorticoid epigenetic score seems to be more important to GAA in girls. This study supports the evidence of sex-specificity in stress response, suggesting the glucocorticoid as a possible pathway adopted by girls to accelerate the maturation in an adverse condition.

Adolescent mothers and their children affected by HIV-An exploration of maternal mental health, and child cognitive development.

Some children born to adolescent mothers may have developmental challenges, while others do not. Research focusing on which children of adolescent mothers are at the highest risk for cognitive delay is still required. Both maternal HIV status and maternal mental health may affect child development. An examination of maternal mental health, especially in the presence of maternal HIV infection may be timely. This study explores the relationship between the mental health of adolescent mothers (comparing those living with and not living with HIV) and the cognitive development performance scores of their children. Additional possible risk and protective factors for poor child development are explored to identify those children born to adolescent mothers who may be at the greatest risk of poor cognitive development. Cross-sectional data utilised within the analyses was drawn from a large cohort of adolescent mothers and their children residing in South Africa. Detailed study questionnaires were completed by adolescent mothers relating to their self and their child and, standardised cognitive assessments were completed by trained researchers for all children using in the Mullen Scales of Early Learning. Chi-square, t-tests (Kruskal Wallis tests, where appropriate), and ANOVA were used to explore sample characteristics and child cognitive development scores by maternal mental health status (operationalised as likely common mental disorder) and combined maternal mental health and HIV status. Multivariable linear regression models were used to explore the relationship between possible risk factors (including poor maternal mental health and HIV) and, child cognitive development scores. The study included 954 adolescent mothers; 24.1% (230/954) were living with HIV, 12.6% (120/954) were classified as experiencing likely common mental disorder. After adjusting for covariates, maternal HIV was found to be associated with reduced child gross motor scores (B = -2.90 [95%CI: -5.35, -0.44], p = 0.02), however, no other associations were identified between maternal likely common mental disorder, or maternal HIV status (including interaction terms), and child cognitive development scores. Sensitivity analyses exploring individual maternal mental health scales identified higher posttraumatic stress symptomology scores as being associated with lower child cognitive development scores. Sensitivity analyses exploring potential risk and protective factors for child cognitive development also identified increased maternal educational attainment as being protective of child development scores, and increased child age as a risk factor for lower development scores. This study addresses a critical evidence gap relating to the understanding of possible risk factors for the cognitive development of children born to adolescent mothers affected by HIV. This group of mothers experience a complex combination of risk factors, including HIV, likely common mental disorder, and structural challenges such as educational interruption. Targeting interventions to support the cognitive development of children of adolescent mothers most at risk may be of benefit. Clearly a basket of interventions needs to be considered, such as the integration of mental health provision within existing services, identifying multiple syndemics of risk, and addressing educational and structural challenges, all of which may boost positive outcomes for both the mother and the child.

BELLA SWAN’S BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER AS ARESULT OF THE ABSENCE OF MATERNAL CARE IN STEPHENIE MEYER’S TWILIGHT SAGA

Abstract&#x0D; Mental disorders are common in modern times. It can be seen in the novel Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight Saga. It describes that the main character has a psychological problem. As a result of her failed expectations about her mother's figure, she experienced early trauma and disappointment, which culminated in mental changes that led to Borderline Personality Disorder. Two problems are proposed in this research; how does the absence of maternal care trigger mental disorders and the impact of Borderline Personality Disorder suffered by BellaSwan. This research uses the theory of Object Relations by Otto F. Kernberg. Two of Kernberg’s concepts are considered appropriate to be utilized: mother-daughter relationships and the concept of Borderline Personality Disorder. Those concepts help this research to describehow the absence of maternal care trigger mental disorder and the kind of Borderline Personality Disorder suffered by Bella Swan. The result of this research shows two main points. First, the absence of maternal care is the cause of the failure of character-forming and it led to Borderline Personality Disorder. Second, the impact is shown through her being unconfident and split up from the social.

Cohort profile: maternal and child health and parenting practices during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ceará, Brazil: birth cohort study (Iracema-COVID)

PurposeMaternal and child health and parenting practices during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ceará (Iracema-COVID) is a longitudinal, prospective population-based birth cohort designed to understand the effects of the pandemic and...

The Effectiveness of Murrotal Al-Quran in Third Trimester Pregnant with Maternal Mental Disorder

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women experience physiological and psychological changes during pregnancy. Psychological changes experienced by pregnant women show symptoms of anxiety, worry, and depression. The use of Al-Quran therapy by means of Murottal Al-Quran is one of an intervention for mental health problems of pregnant women. AIM: This research was carried out by aimed to determine the effect of the murottal Al-Quran on pregnant women who experience Maternal Mental Disorder (MMD). METHODS: This was a quantitative study using design pre and post experimental testing without control group. The participants in this study were 25 respondents aged 15-21 years, on the 3rd trimester of pregnancy, are able to read the Al-Quran, routinely carry out pregnancy checks at the health center or posyandu (pos pelayanan terpadu) (integrated healthcare, willing to become respondents, and her ANRQ score which was ≥ 23. Respondents were asked to listen to the murottal every day for 30 minutes on 05.00 and 20.00 WIB for 2 weeks. After two weeks, the respondents were checked for their mental condition using the ANRQ questionnaire through the google form application. The bivariate analysis used was the Wilcoxon test. RESULT: Most of the pregnant women experienced MMD as many as 76% while after being given the intervention, most of the pregnant women who did not experience MMD were 72%. Median pretest 24,76 and posttest 21,88. Giving Murottal Al-Quran therapy to pregnant women in the third trimester had an influence on their MMD status (p &lt; 0.000). CONCLUSIONS: Chanting holy verses that are played can stimulate the hypothalamus to produce endorphins, cortisone, and catecholamine, thus making pregnant women relax. Murottal Al-Quran treatment can be utilized to help pregnant women with mental health issues.

Forecasting childhood adversities from conditions of birth.

Childbirth presents an optimal time for identifying high-risk families to commence intervention that could avert various childhood health and social adversities. We sought to establish the minimum set of exposures required to accurately predict a range of adverse childhood outcomes up to the age of 13years, from a set of 14 individual and familial risk exposures evident at the time of birth. Participants were 72,059 Australian children and their parents drawn from a multi-register population cohort study (data spanning 1994-2018). Risk exposures included male sex, young mother (aged ≤21years), no (or late first; >16weeks) antenatal visit, maternal smoking during pregnancy, small for gestational age, preterm birth, pregnancy complications (any of hypertension, diabetes mellitus, gestational diabetes or pre-eclampsia), >2 previous pregnancies of ≥20weeks, socio-economic disadvantage, prenatal child protection notification, and maternal or paternal mental disorder or criminal offending history. Individual outcomes included early childhood developmental vulnerability (age 5years), sustained educational underachievement (age 8 and 10years), mental disorder diagnoses, substantiated childhood maltreatment, and contact with the police as a victim or person-of-interest up to age 13-14years. Risk exposures at birth predicted individual childhood outcomes with fair to excellent accuracy: the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves ranged between 0.60 (95% CI 0.58, 0.62) for childhood mental disorder and 0.83 (95% CI 0.82, 0.85) for substantiated child maltreatment. The presence of five or more exposures characterised 12-25% of children with one or more adverse outcomes and showed high predictive certainty for models predicting multiple outcomes, which were apparent in 9% of the population. Up to a quarter of the neonatal population at risk of multiple adverse outcomes can be detected at birth, with implications for population health screening. However, cautious implementation of these models is warranted, given their relatively low positive predictive values.

Growth rate of children of a cohort up to the sixth month of life

The scope of this article is to investigate factors that contributed to the growth rate of children from birth through the sixth month of life. It involves a cohort study with 144 children observed at birth and in the first, second and sixth months of life. Child head circumference (cm/month), weight (g/day) and length (cm/month) rates were compared according to birth, pregnancy, maternal and family characteristics and those related to the food, illness and health care of the child. The female sex and difficulty in breastfeeding contributed to the deceleration of all three growth rates, while maternal non-vaccination against tetanus affected the increase of head circumference and of child length. Severe maternal mental disorder, moderate/severe food insecurity, oatmeal consumption and failure to follow-up the development of the child influenced the head circumference and weight rates. The intake of alcohol during pregnancy, cesarean delivery, mixed/predominant breastfeeding, use of infant formula and episodes of diarrhea/vomiting affected the head circumference, while inadequate prenatal care affected weight, and low-stature mothers and pacifier use affected length. Modifiable factors are highlighted, such as the consumption of oatmeal and infant formula, and the use of pacifiers, which are related to breastfeeding in infants.

Prevalence and associated risk factors of antenatal depression among Brazilian pregnant women: A population-based study

• Antenatal depression (AD) is a common maternal mental health disorder that affects women globally and is considered a public health concern, especially in developing countries. • Overall, there is a lack of population-based studies assessing the prevalence and the relationship between sociodemographic and obstetric variables with AD. • Among 22.621 women (18–49 years old) from the Brazilian National Health Survey (PNS−2013) there was 800 pregnant women. The AD prevalence was 11.4% (95%CI: 8.5% - 14.9%). • AD was associated with lower education, a non-white skin color and living alone. • In Brazil, AD is prevalent and its associated with a vulnerable sociodemographic profile. An equitable mental health assistance for pregnant women should consider risks factors such as race, education and partner status. Antenatal depression is frequently prevalent but results may vary among studies. We aim to estimate the prevalence of antenatal depression and its associated sociodemographic and obstetric risk factors. We used data from the Brazilian National Survey (PNS 2013), a population-based study, with complex and probabilistic sampling method. Of the 22.445 women at reproductive age (18 to 49 years old) participants in the PNS 2013, there were 800 women reported being pregnant at the time of interview. All participants answered the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and a questionnaire with sociodemographic, obstetric and clinical data. Pregnant women with a PHQ-9 score ≥ 10 were classified as “Depressed”. All variables were categorized. Logistic regression models were performed to obtain crude and adjusted odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) for the association between explanatory variables and antenatal depression. Among 800 pregnant women, 95 (11.4%; 95%CI: 8.5%:14.9%) were classified as depressed. In the adjusted analysis, the following variables were associated with higher risk of AD: an elementary school degree (adjusted OR 5.22, 95% CI 2.10:12.9), a non-white skin color (aOR 2.67, 95% CI 1.44 - 4.94) and living alone (aOR 2.16, 95% CI 1.12:4.18). In Brazil, antenatal depression is prevalent and its associated with a vulnerable sociodemographic profile. An equitable mental health assistance for pregnant women should consider risks factors such as race, education and partner status.

Childhood Allergies: The Role of Maternal Depression and Anxiety, and Family Strain.

Maternal mental disorder and a negative family emotional climate are a great source of stress for many children, yet their role in the childhood development or expression of asthma and allergies remains poorly understood, particularly beyond the first 1–2 years of life. The current study tested whether childhood allergy onset and symptomatology would be predicted by (1) perinatal and any time exposure to maternal depression or anxiety and (2) current family emotional strain (whole family, mother-child). UK mothers of children aged 2–12 years (N = 328) living with them completed an online survey of measures. Children exposed to maternal depression were almost twice as likely to be diagnosed and almost five times as likely to screen positive for an allergic disorder. Perinatal depression was linked to childhood allergies, but more moderately. Any anxiety exposure, and not specific to the perinatal period, predicted allergy status. Family emotional strain contributed independently to variance in concurrent child allergic symptomatology. All results were independent of potential confounders and current mental distress. The findings highlight the importance of maternal mental health and family function in the child’s neuro-immune development, and that these factors need to be addressed in the treatment of childhood allergic disorders.

Coronavirus disease 2019, food security and maternal mental health in Ceará, Brazil: a repeated cross-sectional survey.

To quantify the change in the risk of food insecurity and maternal mental disorder (MMD) before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Repeated cross-sectional survey. Between 17 July and 10 September 2020, mother-child pairs who were enrolled in a population-based survey in 2017 were re-contacted by telephone for consent and to complete a telephonic COVID-19 survey. We used the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale to assess food security and the Self Reporting Questionnaire-20 to assess MMD. McNemar's test for paired data that also accounted for clustering was used. Logistic regression was used to assess the relationship of unemployment and receipt of government assistance with food insecurity and MMD in 2020. Ceará, Brazil. Five hundred and seventy-seven mother-child pairs completed the 2017 and 2020 surveys. At the time of the 2020 interview, the child cohort was 36-108 months of age. The proportion of mothers reporting food insecurity was 15·5 % higher (95 % CI 5·9, 25·1, P value < 0·001) during the pandemic in July-August 2020 as compared with November 2017, while the prevalence of MMD was 40·2 % higher during the pandemic (95 % CI 32·6, 47·8, P value < 0·001). Loss of formal employment was associated with increased risk of food insecurity, but not with the risk of MMD. The risk of food insecurity and MMD in Ceará increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. These findings highlight the need for policies and interventions to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal and child health, nutrition and well-being in Brazil.

Association of Maternal Common Mental Disorder and Young Children Acute Malnutrition among Mekelle Public Health Facilities, Northern Ethiopia, 2019 - a Case-control Study

Background: The World Health Organization has claimed that morbidity and disability of the global population due to child malnutrition has internationally become the chief cause of disability. However, in our country, its association with a young child’s nutritional outcomes is rarely studied. Objectives: To assess the effect of maternal common mental disorder and substance abuse on young child acute malnutrition. Methods: An institution's based case-control study was conducted among 192 women; 64 cases and 128 control in Mekelle public health facilities. Two hospitals and three health centers were included in this study. Self-Reporting Questionnaire 20-Item (SRQ-20) was used to assess the presence of maternal common mental disorder. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed. The strength of association was measured through odds ratio at their 95% CI. The statistical significance was set at p&lt;0.05. Results: The result of this study revealed that young children who have a mother with a common mental disorder are 6.1 times [AOR= 6.11, 95%CI (1.18, 31.71)] more likely to develop acute malnutrition than children who have mothers with no common mental disorder. Mothers of acutely malnourished children should be evaluated early for the detection of maternal common mental disorder for appropriate referral and support. Conclusion: Maternal common mental disorder was an independent determinant of young children’s acute malnutrition. Mothers of acutely malnourished children should be evaluated early for the detection of maternal common mental disorder for appropriate referral and support.