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Psychological Distress During Pregnancy and the Development of Pregnancy-Induced Hypertension: A Prospective Study

Pop VJM, Boekhorst MGBM, Deneer R, Oei G, Endendijk JJ, Kop WJ

Psychosomatic medicine, 2022

1,219 participants

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) is associated with serious complications in both the mother and the unborn child. We examined the possible association between trajectories of maternal psychological distress symptoms and PIH separately in primiparous and multiparous women.

METHODS: Pregnancy-specific negative affect (P-NA) and depressive symptoms were assessed prospectively at each trimester using the Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale pregnancy negative affect subscale (P-NA) and the Edinburgh Depression Scale (EDS). Data on PIH were collected from medical records. Growth mixture modeling analysis was used to identify trajectories of P-NA and EDS. The independent role of P-NA and EDS symptom trajectories on developing PIH was examined using multivariate logistic regression models.

RESULTS: One hundred (7.6%) women developed PIH and were compared with 1219 women without hypertension or other complications during pregnancy. Three P-NA trajectories were identified: low stable (reference group; 90%), decreasing (5.2%), and increasing (4.8%). The latter two classes showed persistently and significantly higher P-NA symptoms during pregnancy compared with the reference group. In multiparous women, high P-NA scores (belonging to classes 2 and 3) were related to PIH (odds ratio [OR] = 6.91, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.26-21.2), independent of body mass index (OR = 1.17, 95% CI = 1.06-1.27) and previous PIH (OR = 14.82, 95% CI = 6.01-32.7). No associations between…

How strong is the evidence?

Evidence Hub reads this as a cohort study, done in people. Its evidence level is 3 of 5 (Moderate · trial / cohort / secondary analysis). Trials without a large randomized design, cohorts and secondary analyses give moderate evidence. Reported size: 1,219 participants or records.

How the five levels of evidence work. The level is assigned automatically from the abstract and can be wrong, so check the paper.

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