Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41473218›Full record

ArticleWomen's health reports (New Rochelle, N.Y.)2025

Maternal Psychotherapy Addressing Generational Stress is Associated with Lower Preterm Birth Risk: The Pforzheim Study.

Gerlinde As Metz, Tanzi D Hoover, Rupert Linder

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Women's health reports (New Rochelle, N.Y.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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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

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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

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

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.

Gerlinde As MetzCanadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada.
Tanzi D HooverCanadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, Canada.
Rupert LinderPrivate Practice for Gynecology, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Birkenfeld, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: Maternal distress is a significant risk factor for adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes across generations. Psychotherapy can reduce distress and build resilience, potentially mitigating the effects of inter- and transgenerational stress. Methods: This study examined whether an integrated, personalized psychotherapy approach focused on inter- and transgenerational stress can be associated with improved pregnancy and birth outcomes. Records from 239 women and their babies were collected between 2004 and 2012 at a private clinic specializing in gynecology, obstetrics, psychosomatics, and psychotherapy in Germany. Pregnant women received routine gynecological care alongside complementary psychotherapeutic interventions, including system-oriented psychosomatic therapy, solution-focused therapy, salutogenesis, and couple therapy, with emphasis on inter- and transgenerational stress. These data were compared with birth records from regional standard care deliveries in the city of Pforzheim ( Results: The findings showed that complementary psychotherapy was associated with lower rates of primary and secondary cesarean sections, fewer vaginal surgical procedures, a higher proportion of spontaneous births, and a lower preterm birth rate compared with standard care. Women receiving psychotherapy had an 18.2% higher likelihood of spontaneous birth and a lower observed preterm birth rate (2.2%) than those in standard care (9.0%). Infants of mothers in the psychotherapy group were heavier, taller, and had larger head circumferences. Conclusion: In this study, psychotherapeutic counseling within standard gynecological care was linked to longer pregnancy duration, improved birth mode, and greater birth weight. These findings suggest psychotherapy can be a safe, preventive approach during pregnancy to support maternal well-being and promote healthier outcomes for newborns.

Indexed as

birth outcomebirth weightcesarean sectionintergenerationalmaternal healthmental healthnewborn healthpremature birthpsychosomaticsalutogenesissocial supportstresstransgenerational

Identifiers

PMID41473218
PMCPMC12747516

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