Prenatal Job-Related Stressors and Neurocognitive Development in Children

• In Event: Poster Session 01
  In Poster Session: PS 01 Topic - Biological Processes: Psychophysiology

Abstract

Background
Stress in pregnancy is a clinical and public concern because of potential adverse effects on the mother, pregnancy, and child. Studies in this area often neglect to identify the source of stress, thereby missing potential opportunities for intervention. One important source of stress is job stress, which has been shown in non-pregnant samples to alter diurnal cortisol patterns (Lindholm, 2012) and sleep cycles (Hosseinabadi, 2019). These types of changes are of particular interest for pregnant women because they may pose risks for poor perinatal and child health outcomes. We hypothesize that both irregular shifts and working long hours during pregnancy will be associated with poor cognitive development in infancy.

The Understanding Pregnancy Signals and Infant Development (UPSIDE) cohort study in Rochester, NY has enrolled 326 pregnant women in their first trimester and followed 294 subsequent term-birth children, with continued follow-up through age 4. Data for this hypothesis was collected during the first, second and third trimesters of pregnancy and when the children were 6, 12, and 24 months old. The UPSIDE study has collected and assessed repeated biological, quantitative and qualitative data, allowing for the evaluation of associations from early gestation through early childhood.

Methods
Participants self-identified as either working a regular daytime shift, or one of several irregular shifts (evening, night or varied) and reported average hours worked per week We propose utilizing the cognitive scaled-score and the language scaled-score of the Bayley Scales of Infant Development-III (BSID-III) (Bayley, 2006), which is administered at 6, 12, and 24 months.

Analysis Plan
Bivariate associations between job-related stress measures and child BSID-III scores will be assessed. Shift will be evaluated as regular daytime shift compared to non-regular shift and hours of work per week will be evaluated both continuously and dichotomously (above compared to at or below 40 hours) as part of our assessment of job stress. The two BSID-III subscales will be evaluated as separate outcomes in independent associations with job-related stress at each of the post-natal visit assessments. In multivariable analyses, we will include a priori covariables based on previous literature including age of mother at enrollment, maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index, maternal prenatal self-reported stress measures, gestational age at delivery, and birthweight.

Feasibility
All pre- and perinatal (e.g., regarding job stress and covariables) have been collected and are now being analyzed. BSID-III scores are currently available at 6, 12, and 24 months (N=206, N=160, N=71, respectively) and data collection is ongoing.

Authors

• Allison Avrich Ciesla, University of Rochester Medical Center
  Presenting Author

• Hannah R. Murphy, University of Rochester Medical Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Amber Kautz, University of Rochester Medical Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Emily Barrett, Rutgers University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Richard Miller, UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER SCHOOL OF MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY
  Non-Presenting Author

• Thomas G O'Connor, University of Rochester Medical Center
  Non-Presenting Author