Sex-specific associations between maternal pregnancy-specific anxiety and newborn amygdalar volumes - preliminary findings from the FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study
Satu J. Lehtola,
Jetro J. Tuulari,
Linnea Karlsson,
John D. Lewis,
Vladimir S. Fonov,
D. Louis Collins,
Riitta Parkkola,
Jani Saunavaara,
Niloofar Hashempour,
Juho Pelto,
Tuire Lähdesmäki,
Noora M. Scheinin,
Hasse Karlsson
Affiliations
Satu J. Lehtola
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Jetro J. Tuulari
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Linnea Karlsson
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
John D. Lewis
Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University
Vladimir S. Fonov
Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University
D. Louis Collins
Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University
Riitta Parkkola
Department of Radiology, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital
Jani Saunavaara
Department of Medical Physics, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital
Niloofar Hashempour
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Juho Pelto
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Tuire Lähdesmäki
Department of Pediatric Neurology, University of Turku and Turku University Hospital
Noora M. Scheinin
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Hasse Karlsson
FinnBrain Birth Cohort Study, Turku Brain and Mind Center, Institute of Clinical Medicine University of Turku
Previous literature links maternal pregnancy-specific anxiety (PSA) with later difficulties in child emotional and social cognition as well as memory, functions closely related to the amygdala and the hippocampus. Some evidence also suggests that PSA affects child amygdalar volumes in a sex-dependent way. However, no studies investigating the associations between PSA and newborn amygdalar and hippocampal volumes have been reported. We investigated the associations between PSA and newborn amygdalar and hippocampal volumes and whether associations are sex-specific in 122 healthy newborns (68 males/54 females) scanned at 2–5 weeks postpartum. PSA was measured at gestational week 24 with the Pregnancy-Related Anxiety Questionnaire Revised 2 (PRAQ-R2). The associations were analyzed with linear regression controlling for confounding variables. PSA was associated positively with left amygdalar volume in girls, but no significant main effect was found in the whole group or in boys. No significant main or sex-specific effect was found for hippocampal volumes. Although this was an exploratory study, the findings suggest a sexually dimorphic association of mid-pregnancy PSA with newborn amygdalar volumes.
