Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35907125›Full record

SynthesisMaternal and child health journal2022

Examining the Relationship Between Return to Work After Giving Birth and Maternal Mental Health: A Systematic Review.

Rachel Elizabeth McCardel, Emily Hannah Loedding, Heather Marie Padilla

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Maternal and child health journal, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Rachel Elizabeth McCardelDepartment of Health Promotion and Behavior, University of Georgia, 100 Foster Road, 145 Wright Hall, Athens, GA, 30602, USA. rachel.mccardel25@uga.edu.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0365-7169
Emily Hannah LoeddingDepartment of Health Promotion and Behavior, University of Georgia, 100 Foster Road, 145 Wright Hall, Athens, GA, 30602, USA.
Heather Marie PadillaDepartment of Health Promotion and Behavior, University of Georgia, 100 Foster Road, 145 Wright Hall, Athens, GA, 30602, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionThe negative impacts of mental health disorders on the well-being of women and their infants are clear. However, less is known about the relationship between returning to work after giving birth and mental health. Previous reviews examined the relationship between maternity leave and mental health, but we defined return to work as the process of returning to part-time or full-time work after giving birth and caring for infant. This systematic review aims to: (1) describe operational definitions for return to work and (2) describe the evidence on the relationship between return to work and maternal mental health.

methodsWe searched PubMed, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Web of Science for peer-reviewed studies. Articles were selected if they were published within the past 20 years, examined at least one mental health condition (e.g., depression, anxiety), and included a study sample of U.S. working mothers.

resultsWe identified 20 articles published between 2001 and 2020. We found conflicting evidence from longitudinal and cross-sectional data demonstrating that return to work was associated with improvements and negative consequences to mental health. Work-related predictors of mental health included: access to paid maternity leave, work-family conflict, total workload, job flexibility, and coworker support. DISCUSSION: This review provides evidence that return to work and mental health are related, though the study samples have limited generalizability to all U.S. working mothers. More research is needed to understand the direction of this relationship throughout the perinatal period and how return to work affects other mental health conditions (e.g., anxiety, stress).

Indexed as

Mental HealthReturn to WorkCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansInfantMothersParturitionPregnancyMaternal mental healthReturn to workSystematic reviewWorking mother

Identifiers

PMID35907125

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.