Trajectories of maternal mental health: a prospective study of mothers of infants with congenital heart defects from pregnancy to 36 months postpartum.

OBJECTIVE To chart mothers' trajectories of mental health from pregnancy to 36 months postpartum in order to investigate the association between infants' congenital heart defects (CHD) and compromised maternal mental health. METHODS Mothers of infants with mild, moderate, or severe CHD (n = 141) and mothers (n = 36,437) enrolled in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study were assessed at regular intervals from pregnancy up to 36 months postpartum, including measurements at 6 and 18 months, using an 8-item version of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25. RESULTS Mean score trajectories of SCL-8 for mothers of infants with severe CHD deviated significantly from cohort controls 6, 18, and 36 months postpartum, indicating heightened symptoms of depression and anxiety. CONCLUSIONS Mothers of infants with severe CHD are at risk of compromised mental health from delivery to 36 months postpartum. Strain due to CHD-related interventions is identified as a possible partial mediator of the distress.