Motherhood and schizophrenic illnesses: a review of the literature.
OBJECTIVE
To provide an overview of the current knowledge on the impact of motherhood on women with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.


METHODS
The published literature was selectively reviewed and assessed, based on a complete MEDLINE and PsychLIT (1971 to current) search, including English and non-English journals and books.


RESULTS
Research to date into motherhood and schizophrenic illnesses has been limited by a number of methodological constraints, limiting the ability to draw conclusions and the prevention of relapses and mother-infant difficulties. These constraints have included: a paucity of prospective studies with initial, antenatal recruitment; variable definitions of the length of the puerperium; significant changes in psychiatric classification; the heterogeneity of postpartum psychotic disorders, with the majority being mood or schizoaffective disorder rather than schizophrenia; selection biases inherent in studying mother-baby unit inpatients; difficulties in life events research in general, such as its retrospective nature and confounding, illness factors; and the specificity versus non-specificity of childbirth as a unique or discrete life event.


CONCLUSIONS
Further study is required to explore: the impact of child care, parenting and having a partner on the course of women with schizophrenic and schizoaffective disorders during the first postpartum year; whether women with postpartum relapses of these mental illnesses are likely to have slower recoveries than those women with the same diagnoses but without young children; and protective factors against postpartum relapse.
Bosanac
Peter
P
Department of Psychiatry, Austin Repatriation Medical Centre, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia. peter.bosnac@armc.org.au
Buist
Anne
A
Burrows
Graham
G
D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D012559:Schizophrenia; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology