Women who are well informed about prenatal genetic screening delay emotional attachment to their fetus.
BACKGROUND
Prenatal maternal serum screening allows assessment of risk of chromosomal abnormalities in the fetus and is increasingly being offered to all women regardless of age or prior risk. However ensuring informed choice to participate in screening is difficult and the psychological implications of making an informed decision are uncertain. The aim of this study was to compare the growth of maternal-fetal emotional attachment in groups of women whose decisions about participation in screening were informed or not informed.


METHODS
A prospective longitudinal design was used. English speaking women were recruited in antenatal clinics prior to the offer of second trimester maternal screening. Three self-report questionnaires completed over the course of pregnancy used validated measures of informed choice and maternal-fetal emotional attachment. Attachment scores throughout pregnancy in informed and not-informed groups were compared in repeated measures analysis.


RESULTS
134 completed the first assessment (recruitment 73%) and 68 (58%) provided compete data. The informed group had significantly lower attachment scores (p = 0.023) than the not-informed group prior to testing, but scores were similar (p = 0.482) after test results were known.


CONCLUSIONS
The findings raise questions about the impact of delayed maternal-fetal attachment and appropriate interventions to facilitate informed choice to participate in screening.
Rowe
Heather
H
Key Centre for Women's Health in Society, School of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. h.rowe@unimelb.edu.au
Fisher
Jane
J
Quinlivan
Julie
J
D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D001364:Awareness; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D005817:Genetic Counseling; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008403:Mass Screening; D033261:Maternal-Fetal Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors