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Impact of maternal prenatal smoking on fetal to infant neurobehavioral development
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 August 2018
Abstract
Despite recent emphasis on the profound importance of the fetal environment in “programming” postnatal development, measurement of offspring development typically begins after birth. Using a novel coding strategy combining direct fetal observation via ultrasound and actocardiography, we investigated the impact of maternal smoking during pregnancy (MSDP) on fetal neurobehavior; we also investigated links between fetal and infant neurobehavior. Participants were 90 pregnant mothers and their infants (52 MSDP-exposed; 51% minorities; ages 18–40). Fetal neurobehavior at baseline and in response to vibro-acoustic stimulus was assessed via ultrasound and actocardiography at M = 35 weeks gestation and coded via the Fetal Neurobehavioral Assessment System (FENS). After delivery, the NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale was administered up to seven times over the first postnatal month. MSDP was associated with increased fetal activity and fetal limb movements. Fetal activity, complex body movements, and cardiac–somatic coupling were associated with infants' ability to attend to stimuli and to self-regulate over the first postnatal month. Furthermore, differential associations emerged by MSDP group between fetal activity, complex body movements, quality of movement, and coupling, and infant attention and self-regulation. The present study adds to a growing literature establishing the validity of fetal neurobehavioral measures in elucidating fetal programming pathways.
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- Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018
Footnotes
This research was supported by the National Institutes of Health Grants R01 DA019558 and R01 DA036999 (to L.R.S.) and the Flight Attendant Medical Research Institute Clinical Innovator Award (to L.R.S.). We gratefully acknowledge the families who contributed to this study and the Maternal–Infant Studies Laboratory staff for their assistance with data collection. We are also grateful to Cheryl Boyce and Nicolette Borek, Program Officers, for their support of this work and this field.
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