Soumiya Shanmugam
Research Mentor(s): Nadia Saadat
Mentor Department: Pediatrics
Authors: Nadia Saadat, Soumiya Shanmugam
Session: Session 6 (3:00pm – 3:50pm)
Presentation Type: Poster 14
Abstract
Prenatal outcomes are heavily influenced by maternal health and psychosocial factors such as depressive symptoms, anxiety, and social support. Pregnant African American women (n = 587) were recruited in a prenatal clinic in the Midwest and completed questionnaires along with getting their blood drawn at a prenatal visit. To see the potential association between the variables, further statistical analysis was conducted through SPSS. Through the preliminary data analysis, there was an association between depressive symptoms which was collected using the CESD scale and anxiety which both appear to have a negative influence on maternal well being and pose a greater risk of pregnancy and birth complications. Additionally, there appears to be a significant relationship between social support and both depressive symptoms and anxiety. The relationship between the factors and their influence on pregnancy outcomes does seem to be complex however there is an ongoing idea that social support acts as an emotional buffer against stressful influences thus working towards mitigating the negative effects of depressive symptoms and anxiety on maternal health. It is critical to understand and elaborate on the influences of all three of these variables on pregnancy outcomes and how they influence one another. With that being said, ideas and concepts are still being introduced thus finding a definite conclusion is still ongoing. Understanding depressive symptoms, anxiety, and social support could allow for potential intervention strategies that would allow for prioritization of maternal health and psychosocial well being.
