Perinatal maternal distress and neurobehavioural development in toddlers.

Aliza Jaffer, Kathryn Y Manning, Gerald F Giesbrecht, Tim F Oberlander, Lianne Tomfohr-Madsen, Catherine Lebel

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Article in Developmental cognitive neuroscience, 2026. 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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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Aliza JafferDepartment of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Kathryn Y ManningDepartment of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Neurosciences and Mental Health Program, The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids), Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Medical Biophysics, The University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Gerald F GiesbrechtAlberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Departments of Psychology, Pediatrics, and Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Tim F OberlanderBC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada; Department of Pediatrics and School of Population and Public Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Lianne Tomfohr-MadsenBC Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada; Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Catherine LebelDepartment of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Electronic address: clebel@ucalgary.ca.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMaternal perinatal psychological distress (e.g., anxiety, depression) is common and has been linked to adverse child behavioural outcomes. Altered brain function provides a potential mechanism through which perinatal distress may impact child behaviour, but specific associations remain unclear. This study investigated associations between perinatal distress, child brain functional connectivity at 2 years, and child behaviour at 2 and 3 years.

methodsNeuroimaging and behavioural data were obtained from the Pregnancy during the COVID-19 Pandemic (PdP) study. Maternal distress (anxiety and depression symptoms) was self-reported throughout the perinatal period; analyses included measures from intake survey and 2 years postpartum. Child behaviour at 2 and 3 years was parent-reported using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ-3). Resting-state fMRI data was collected at 2 years (n = 62) to quantify connectivity within the default mode, executive control, frontoparietal, and sensorimotor networks. Associations between maternal prenatal and postnatal distress, child functional connectivity, and child behaviour were examined using regression models.

resultsPostnatal, but not prenatal, distress was associated with lower gross motor scores at 2 years (B = -0.5, T = -2.8, p = 0.005, df = 3517, q = 0.01). Higher distress both prenatally and postnatally was associated with lower ASQ-3 scores at 3 years across all domains (q < 0.05). Child brain connectivity was not related to maternal distress or behaviour.

conclusionsPerinatal distress was associated with worse behaviour at 2 and 3 years, although no associations with connectivity were observed, suggesting other pathways may underlie these effects. Nonetheless, these findings highlight the importance of supporting mental health during pregnancy and postnatally to promote healthy child development.

Indexed as

BehaviourBrain networkEarly childhoodFunctional connectivityMagnetic resonance imagingPerinatal distress

Identifiers

PMID42869868

DOI10.1016/j.dcn.2026.101837

PMCPMC13685447

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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.