Associations between advanced maternal age and psychological distress in primiparous women, from early pregnancy to 18 months postpartum

Abstract

Objective: To investigate if advanced maternal age at first birth increases the risk of psychological distress during pregnancy at 17 and 30 weeks of gestation and at 6 and 18 months after birth.

Design: National cohort study.

Setting: Norway.

Sample: A total of 19 291 nulliparous women recruited between 1999 and 2008 from hospitals and maternity units.

Methods: Questionnaire data were obtained from the longitudinal Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study, and register data from the national Medical Birth Register. Advanced maternal age was defined as ≥ 32 years and a reference group of women aged 25-31 years was used for comparisons. The distribution of psychological distress from 20 to ≥ 40 years was investigated, and the prevalence of psychological distress at the four time-points was estimated. Logistic regression analyses based on generalised estimation equations were used to investigate associations between advanced maternal age and psychological distress.

Main outcome measures: Psychological distress measured by SCL-5.

Results: Women of advanced age had slightly higher scores of psychological distress over the period than the reference group, also after controlling for obstetric and infant variables. The youngest women had the highest scores. A history of depression increased the risk of distress in all women. With no history of depression, women of advanced age were not at higher risk. Changes over time were similar between groups and lowest at 6 months.

Conclusion: Women of 32 years and beyond had slightly increased risk of psychological distress during pregnancy and the first 18 months of motherhood compared with women aged 25-31 years.