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Faculty have requested this content not be shared on social media
CME Credit Offered
CME Credit Offered
Abstract Award
Abstract Award
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Poster Session 3

(920) The impact of pre-pregnancy anxiety or depression and adverse neonatal outcomes

Friday, January 31, 2025
10:30 AM – 12:30 PM  
Objective: Nearly 30% of females are affected by mental illness, particularly anxiety and depression. Prior studies investigating the relationship between prenatal anxiety and depression and adverse neonatal outcomes have inconsistent findings. We sought to examine the relationship between pre-pregnancy anxiety or depression or a dual diagnosis and adverse neonatal outcomes.

Study Design: This is a secondary analysis of a prospective cohort study of singleton pregnancies at single tertiary medical center from 2017 to 2020. The primary outcomes were preterm birth and composite neonatal morbidity (Table 1). The secondary outcomes were spontaneous preterm birth, small for gestational age (SGA), and 5-minute APGAR < 7. Secondary analyses compared dual diagnosis of anxiety and depression to patients with no diagnosis. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) after adjusting for potential confounders.

Results: Of 1220 patients with live births, 253 (20.7%) had pre-pregnancy anxiety or depression and 967 (79.3%) did not. After adjusting for maternal race and advanced maternal age, patients with pre-pregnancy anxiety or depression were significantly more likely to have preterm birth [19.8% vs 10.9%, aOR 2.07 95% CI 1.42, 3.02] and composite neonatal morbidity [35.2% vs 23.2%, aOR 1.80 95% CI 1.31, 2.41]. Spontaneous p</span>reterm birth, SGA, and 5-minute APGAR < 7 were significantly more likely among patients with anxiety or depression. Secondary analyses comparing dual diagnosis to no diagnosis showed an even greater likelihood of preterm birth, 5-minute APGAR < 7, and composite neonatal morbidity compared to patients without anxiety or depression (Table 2).

Conclusion: Patients with p</span>re-pregnancy anxiety or depression are at higher risk of adverse neonatal outcomes. This risk is further increased with concurrent diagnoses. Further research is needed to determine if optimization of pre-pregnancy anxiety and depression can improve neonatal outcomes.