A recent scientific study showed that treating depression in women during pregnancy may be associated with changes in infant brain development and a decrease in their negative emotional responses during the first months of life, highlighting the importance of providing psychological care to mothers during pregnancy.
The scientific website Medical Xpress reported the day before yesterday that the study, conducted by researchers from the American University of Colorado Anschutz and whose results were published in the journal Nature Communications, followed the effects of psychotherapy for depression during pregnancy on infant brain development.
The study included follow-up of 109 children born to women who participated in a randomized clinical trial, during which pregnant women suffering from high depressive symptoms were divided into two groups; the first received interpersonal psychotherapy, consisting of eight weekly sessions focused on relationships and social support, while the second received enhanced usual care, which included psychoeducation about pregnancy depression and awareness of available mental health services.
The results showed a difference in the size of the hippocampus region in infants whose mothers received psychotherapy during pregnancy, compared to children in the other group, as the size of the right part of this region was smaller in them, and the hippocampus plays an important role in memory, learning, and processes related to emotions.
Researchers also found that the smaller size of this region was associated with decreased negative emotional responses in children at six months of age, although the long-term implications of these differences still require further research.
Katherine Demers, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado Anschutz and the study's lead author, clarified that previous research linked pregnancy depression to differences in children's emotional and behavioral outcomes, but it largely relied on observing correlations, whereas the randomized trial design allowed for a more direct study of the effects of therapeutic intervention.
The study emphasizes the importance of integrating mental health services into prenatal care, with the need for further research to understand the long-term effects of these changes on children's brain development and emotional development.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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