Maternal Psychological Distress Associated With Atopic Dermatitis in Children

According to a study published in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, maternal psychological distress in the prenatal and postnatal periods leads to an increased risk of atopic dermatitis (AD) in children.

Researchers aimed to examine the cumulative impacts of prenatal and postnatal maternal psychological distress on AD development in children to emphasize the importance of maternal mental health support in both the prenatal and postnatal periods. Data from a total of 8377 mother-child pairs in which the child had no AD at age 1 year were collected from the Tohoku Medical Megabank Project Birth and Three-Generation Cohort Study in Japan. Maternal stress and the development of AD in children were examined.

A total of 14% of children between the ages of 1 and 2 years developed AD. Maternal psychological distress in the prenatal and postnatal periods increased the AD risk in children. In addition, maternal psychological stress in the postnatal period alone was also associated with increased AD risk in children. This was not shown in the prenatal period alone.

“The present study found that cumulative exposure to maternal psychological distress in the prenatal and postnatal periods was associated with increased risk of the development of AD in Japanese children at the age of 2 years,” concluded the study authors.

—Jessica Garlewicz 

Reference:

1. Kawaguchi C, Murakami K, Ishikuro M, et al. Cumulative exposure to maternal psychological distress in the prenatal and postnatal periods and atopic dermatitis in children: findings from the TMM BirThree Cohort Study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. Published online March 24, 2022. doi:10.1186/s12884-022-04556-8