Maternal mental health and infant neurodevelopment at 6 months in a low‐income South African cohort

Bibliographic Data

ID11277453
AuthorsMarlette Burger (0000-0001-6529-5469, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Physiotherapy Division, Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch South Africa, corresponding author), Christa Einspieler (0000-0002-7875-0632, Research Unit iDN––Interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics Medical University of Graz Graz Austria), Dana Niehaus (0000-0001-9696-5605, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Department of Psychiatry, Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch South Africa), Marianne Unger (0000-0003-4557-9418, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences Physiotherapy Division, Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch South Africa), Esmé Jordaan (0000-0002-0361-3473, Biostatistics Unit South African Medical Research Council Parow South Africa)
Year2022
Volume43
Issue6
Pages849-863
Publication date2022-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueInfant Mental Health Journal (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0163-9641 • E-ISSN: 1097-0355
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1002/imhj.22021
PMID36268625
OpenAlexW4306976604
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited49

Maternal mental health disorders and the adverse consequences for infant neurodevelopment have received substantial research attention in high‐income countries over the past five decades. In Africa, where relatively little work has been done on this topic, researchers have largely focused on infant physical health outcomes. This longitudinal study investigated the neurodevelopment of infants at 6 months post‐term with exposure to mothers with a clinical diagnosis of persistent mental health disorders residing in low‐income communities in Cape Town, South Africa. Adjusted models revealed no significant differences on the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID‐III) domains (cognitive, motor, language, socio‐emotional, and adaptive behavior) between infants exposed to maternal mental health disorders ( n = 62) and the comparison group ( n = 35) at 3 and 6 months. Subgroup analyses found no significant differences on the BSID‐III domains between infants with exposure to mood disorders ( n = 31), as well as infants with exposure to comorbid (i.e., a combination of two or three) mental health disorders ( n = 14) and the comparison group. However, infants with exposure to psychotic disorders ( n = 14) scored significantly lower on the cognitive and the motor domains and the fine motor subscale. These novel data provide an important contribution to the scientific literature especially in the field of maternal psychotic disorders in Africa

Bayley Scales of Infant Development · Cognition · Cohort · Developmental psychology · Gross motor skill · Mental health · Mood · Mood disorders · Motor skill · Psychiatry · Psychomotor learning · Toddler · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Infant Development and Preterm Care · Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum · Medicine · Psychology · Pediatrics

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