Predictors and comorbidity patterns of maternal birth-related posttraumatic stress symptoms: A Latent Class Analysis

Andreas Staudt; Sophie Baumann; Danny Horesh; Malin Eberhard-Gran; Antje Horsch; Susan Garthus-Niegel

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2022.115038

Predictors and comorbidity patterns of maternal birth-related posttraumatic stress symptoms: A Latent Class Analysis

Psychiatry Res. 2023 Feb;320:115038. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2022.115038. Epub 2022 Dec 29.

Authors

Andreas Staudt¹, Sophie Baumann², Danny Horesh³, Malin Eberhard-Gran⁴, Antje Horsch⁵, Susan Garthus-Niegel⁶

Affiliations

¹ Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany; Department of Methods in Community Medicine, Institute of Community Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany. Electronic address: andreas.staudt@tu-dresden.de.
² Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany; Department of Methods in Community Medicine, Institute of Community Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
³ Department of Psychology, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel; Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, USA.
⁴ Norwegian Research Centre for Women's Health, Women and Children's Division, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway; Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
⁵ Institute of Higher Education and Research in Healthcare, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland; Department Woman-Mother-Child, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
⁶ Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden, Dresden, Germany; Institute for Systems Medicine (ISM), Faculty of Medicine, Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany; Department of Childhood and Families, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway.

PMID: 36603381
DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2022.115038

Abstract

Birth-related posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) place a significant burden on mothers and their families. The aim was to (1) identify differential profiles of maternal birth-related PTSS; (2) determine the predictive value of established risk factors; (3) examine comorbidity patterns related to depression and anxiety symptoms. As part of the Norwegian Ahus Birth Cohort, 2,088 (expectant) mothers completed self-report questionnaires from 17 weeks of gestation to 2 years postpartum. The Impact of Event Scale was used to assess PTSS 8 weeks after birth. Latent class analysis revealed four latent classes: a High birth-related PTSS class (4%), a Moderate birth-related PTSS class (16%) particularly characterized by endorsement of intrusion symptoms, a Mild birth-related PTSS class (47%), as well as a No birth-related PTSS class (33%). We found similar (younger age, worse subjective birth experience, higher fear of childbirth) and differential predictors (prior posttraumatic stress disorder, lower education, birth complications). Women classified with High, Moderate, or Mild birth-related PTSS showed higher depression and anxiety symptoms compared to women with No birth-related PTSS. A considerable number of mothers experienced birth-related PTSS, most on a subclinical level, but these women still showed signs of mental distress 2 years postpartum, calling for more universal prevention approaches.

Keywords: Birth; Childbirth experience; LCA; Mother; PTSD.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Anxiety / epidemiology
Comorbidity
Female
Humans
Latent Class Analysis
Mothers
Pregnancy
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic* / diagnosis