Regression analyses for prenatal maternal anxiety and gestational
age
We also examined the association between maternal anxiety and gestation
(Table 2-B). In the full cohort, a stronger association was found for
those reporting symptoms in the 30th week. Children
exposed to maternal anxiety prenatally, across both the
17th and 30th gestational weeks,
were at higher risk of short gestational age, compared to those not
exposed and those exposed only once during pregnancy. This association
was only moderately reduced, after adjusting for smoking and alcohol
consumption and remained significant. Similarly to the associations for
birthweight, these associations was further reduced, but remained robust
after adjusting for multiple birth-related and socio-demographic
variables in step 2 and 3.
In the sibling-design, we found no significant associations between
maternal anxiety and gestational age. The confidence intervals were
quite wide and overlapped the corresponding confidence intervals derived
from the full cohort. Unlike the case of birthweight, the different set
of adjustments did not change the magnitude of the associations.