Relationship between prenatal stress and neonatal age and weight

Abstract

Introduction: The role of stress in health and sickness has been shown in many studies. This is a fact that stress is related with many diseases. Studies showed that one unit increase in maternal stress score is related with 55.03 gram reduction in neonatal weight as wall as a 3 day reduction in age of birth. This study evaluated the relation between maternal stress, neonatal age and weight at birth in Isfahan.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional, descriptive, analytic survey which covered 301 women who referred to selected hospitals in Isfahan. Data collection was done by questionnaires, interviews and hospital documents. Data were analyzed by variance analysis and step down regression analysis.

Results: Data analysis showed that maternal stress is related with neonatal age (P=0.004) and weight at birth (P=0.041).

Conclusion: Given the results, promotion of community knowledge in maternal emotional health is necessary. Public health can be promoted through maternal emotional support. Appropriate strategies can be applied to decrease maternal stress and increase mothers' knowledge on how to cope with stress.