Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2024 Jul;162:105723. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105723. Epub 2024 May 16.
The COVID-19 pandemic, with its far-reaching influence on daily life, constituted a highly stressful experience for many people worldwide, jeopardizing individuals' mental health, particularly in vulnerable populations such as pregnant women. While a growing body of evidence links prenatal maternal stress to biological and developmental alterations in offspring, the specific impact of prenatal exposure to maternal pandemic-related stress (PRS) on infant development remains unclear. A comprehensive literature search was performed in October 2023 according to the PRISMA guidelines, which yielded a total of 28 records. The selected papers investigated a vast range of developmental and biological outcomes in the offspring with large methodological variations. The reviewed studies showed mixed results. Either direct associations between maternal PRS during pregnancy and infant temperament and socio-emotional development, or indirect links, mediated by maternal mental health, emerged in most studies. Furthermore, maternal PRS was associated with epigenetic and brain alterations in the offspring, although studies were limited in number. Collectively, the reviewed findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the role of early adverse exposures on infant development.
COVID-19 大流行对日常生活产生了深远影响，给全世界许多人带来了高度压力的体验，危及个人的心理健康，尤其是孕妇等弱势群体。虽然越来越多的证据表明产前母体压力与后代的生物学和发育改变有关，但产前暴露于母体与大流行相关的应激（PRS）对婴儿发育的具体影响仍不清楚。根据 PRISMA 指南，我们于 2023 年 10 月进行了全面的文献检索，共得到 28 条记录。选定的论文调查了后代在发育和生物学方面的广泛结果，但方法学差异很大。综述研究结果喜忧参半。大多数研究表明，妊娠期间母体 PRS 与婴儿气质和社会情感发展之间存在直接关联，或者通过母体心理健康产生间接关联。此外，母体 PRS 与后代的表观遗传和大脑改变有关，尽管研究数量有限。总的来说，综述结果有助于更深入地了解早期不良暴露对婴儿发育的作用。
