This qualitative study explores therapists’ and participants’ preferences for delivery methods (face-to-face and phone sessions) of a cognitive behavioral therapy-based psychosocial intervention for prenatal anxiety delivered in a tertiary care hospital.

The research was conducted in a randomized controlled trial in Pakistan, where a shift from face-to-face to phone-based therapy occurred during the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Twenty in-depth interviews and a focus group discussion were conducted with participants and therapists, respectively. Transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis.

Participants generally preferred face-to-face sessions for rapport building, communication, and comprehension. However, barriers like venue accessibility, childcare, and lack of family support hindered engagement. Telephone sessions were favored for easy scheduling and the comfort of receiving the session at home, but there were challenges associated with phone use, distractions at home, and family members’ limited mental health awareness. A mix of face-to-face and telephone sessions was preferred, with rapport from in-person sessions carrying over to telephone interactions.

This study underscores the need for adaptable intervention delivery strategies that consider cultural norms, logistical challenges, and individual family dynamics. By combining the benefits of both delivery methods, mental health interventions can be optimized to effectively address prenatal anxiety and promote well-being in resource-constrained settings like Pakistan.

Mothers' self-reported stroking of their infants over the first weeks of life modifies the association between prenatal depression and physiological and emotional reactivity at 7 months, consistent with animal studies of the effects of tactile stimulation. We now investigate whether the effects of maternal stroking persist to 2.5 years. Given animal and human evidence for sex differences in the effects of prenatal stress we compare associations in boys and girls.

From a general population sample of 1233 first-time mothers recruited at 20 weeks gestation we drew a random sample of 316 for assessment at 32 weeks, stratified by reported inter-partner psychological abuse, a risk indicator for child development. Of these mothers, 243 reported at 5 and 9 weeks how often they stroked their infants, and completed the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) at 2.5 years post-delivery.

There was a significant interaction between prenatal anxiety and maternal stroking in the prediction of CBCL internalizing (p = 0.001) and anxious/depressed scores (p < 0.001). The effects were stronger in females than males, and the three-way interaction prenatal anxiety × maternal stroking × sex of infant was significant for internalizing symptoms (p = 0.003). The interactions arose from an association between prenatal anxiety and internalizing symptoms only in the presence of low maternal stroking.

The findings are consistent with stable epigenetic effects, many sex specific, reported in animal studies. While epigenetic mechanisms may be underlying the associations, it remains to be established whether stroking affects gene expression in humans.

The effect of prenatal distress on the risk of a small for gestational age (SGA) infant is uncertain. We have addressed the influences of prenatal stress, anxiety and depression on the risk of SGA. We also examined the effects of infant sex and timing of distress during pregnancy on any observed associations.

The study population comprised 5606 healthy nulliparous pregnant women who participated in the international prospective Screening for Obstetric and Pregnancy Endpoints (SCOPE) study. Women completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the short form of the Spielberger State–Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 15 ± 1 and 20 ± 1 weeks' gestation. SGA was defined as birthweight below the 10th customized percentile. Logistic regression was used for data analysis, adjusting for several potential confounders such as maternal age, body mass index (BMI), smoking, socio-economic status and physical exercise.

The risk of SGA was increased in relation to mild [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 1.35, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.07–1.71], moderate (aOR 1.26, 95% CI 1.06–1.49), high (aOR 1.45, 95% CI 1.08–1.95) and very high stress scores (aOR 1.56, 95% CI 1.03–2.37); very high anxiety score (aOR 1.45, 95% CI 1.13–1.86); and very high depression score (aOR 1.14, 95% CI 1.05–1.24) at 20 ± 1 weeks' gestation. Sensitivity analyses showed that very high anxiety and very high depression increases the risk of SGA in males but not in females whereas stress increases the risk of SGA in both males and females.

These findings suggest that prenatal stress, anxiety and depression measured at 20 weeks' gestation increase the risk of SGA. The effects of maternal anxiety and depression on SGA were strongest in male infants.