Maternal Psychosocial Stress, COVID-19 Infection Tied to Infant Attentional Processing

Findings revealed lower infant attention scores at six months, which predicted socioemotional function, neurodevelopmental risk

By Lori Solomon HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, Oct. 3, 2023 (HealthDay News) — Maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy may have joint effects on infant attention at six months, according to a study published online Sept. 27 in Pediatric Research.

Denise M. Werchan, Ph.D., from New York University Langone in New York City, and colleagues examined the joint effects of maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy on infant attention at six months postpartum. The analysis included 167 pregnant mother-infant dyads (50 with COVID-19).

The researchers found that maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy jointly predicted infant attention at six months. Higher prenatal psychosocial stress was associated with lower infant attention at six months only among mothers reporting positive COVID-19 infection. In turn, infant attention predicted socioemotional function and neurodevelopmental risk at 12 months.

“This study found that elevated maternal psychosocial stress and COVID-19 infection during pregnancy jointly predicted lower infant attention scores at six months, which is a known marker of risk for neurodevelopmental disorder. In turn, infant attention predicted socioemotional function and risk for neurodevelopmental disorder at 12 months,” the authors write. “These data suggest that maternal psychosocial stress may modulate the effects of gestational infection on neurodevelopment and highlight malleable targets for intervention.”