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. 2018 May-Jun;16(3):282-293.
doi: 10.1080/15402002.2016.1210147. Epub 2016 Aug 2.

Maternal Sleep Quality and Diurnal Cortisol Regulation Over Pregnancy

Margaret H Bublitz  1   2 , Ghada Bourjeily  3 , Christina D'Angelo  1 , Laura R Stroud  1   2
Affiliations

Maternal Sleep Quality and Diurnal Cortisol Regulation Over Pregnancy

Margaret H Bublitz et al. Behav Sleep Med. 2018 May-Jun.

Abstract

Poor sleep in pregnancy is related to adverse neonatal health. Elevated maternal cortisol has been proposed as a pathway, yet the association in pregnancy is not well understood. The goals of the current study were to examine associations between (a) sleep and cortisol, (b) sleep, cortisol, and neonatal outcomes, and (c) variables that could explain these associations. Two hundred pregnant women completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI; Buysse, Reynolds, Monk, Berman, & Kupfer, 1989) and provided diurnal salivary cortisol samples at two times over pregnancy. Poor sleep quality was associated with greater evening cortisol concentrations at 36 weeks' gestation. This association was mediated by anxiety symptoms. Higher evening cortisol at 36 weeks' gestation was associated with shorter gestation.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.. Subjective sleep quality at 36 weeks’ gestation predicts evening cortisol at 36 weeks’ gestation.
Note: Diurnal cortisol patterns were plotted at the lowest and highest quartile of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) global score collected at 36 weeks’ gestation. The PSQI was analyzed as a continuous measure in analyses. * p < .05
Figure 2.
Figure 2.. Maternal anxiety symptoms mediate the association between subjective sleep quality and evening cortisol at 36 weeks’ gestation.
Note. Sleep quality was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) global score collected at 36 weeks’ gestation. Anxiety symptoms were measured at 36 weeks’ gestation using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale. * indicates mediation analysis after adjusting for maternal anxiety symptoms.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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