Increasing Physical Contact Between Prenatally Anxious/Depressed Mothers and Their Infants to Improve Maternal Sensitivity.

NCT ID: NCT06726304

Last Updated: 2024-12-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

NOT_YET_RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

40 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2025-01-31

Study Completion Date

2026-05-31

Brief Summary

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The goal of this randomized controlled pilot trial is to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and clinical utility of a baby carrier intervention aimed at improving maternal sensitivity and mother-infant bonding in prenatally anxious/depressed mothers. The study has three main questions:

1. Is the intervention feasible (e.g., enrollment and recruitment rates) and acceptable to participants (e.g., compliance and perceived benefits)?
2. Does the intervention improve maternal sensitivity compared to a waitlist control group?
3. Does the intervention increase mother-infant neural synchrony compared to a waitlist control group, measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy?

Participants will A. Choose between two soft ergonomic baby carriers and be expected to use the baby carrier for the prescribed amount of time (intervention group).

B. Have two home visits, one at the start (at postpartum week 8) and another one at the end of the study (at postpartum week 16).

C. Complete questionnaires about depression and anxiety symptoms, mother-infant bonding, and rate protocol burden.

D. Share their feelings and lived experiences about the frequent use of a baby carrier and increased physical contact with their baby through open-ended interview questions (intervention group).

Detailed Description

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The intervention involves mothers in the experimental group using a soft ergonomic baby carrier for a prescribed amount of time over a period of six weeks. Weekly adherence self-reports will be collected via REDCap. Participants will be recruited from the Perinatal Multisite Databank (PMD), an ongoing clinical cohort of individuals receiving psychiatric services during pregnancy and the first six months postpartum in the province of Quebec, Canada.

Conditions

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Prenatal Anxiety Prenatal Depression Maternal Sensitivity

Keywords

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baby carrier maternal sensitivity inter-personal neural synchrony perinatal anxiety perinatal depression

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Behavioural intervention with rolling recruitment
Primary Study Purpose

OTHER

Blinding Strategy

QUADRUPLE

Participants Caregivers Investigators Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

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Baby Carrier Intervention Group

Participants and their babies will be visited twice by trained research staff in their home. Once at the beginning of the study (at 8 weeks postpartum) and for a second time at the end of the study (at 16 weeks postpartum). During the first visit, mothers will choose between two soft ergonomic baby carriers and be given instructions regarding the expected frequency and length of usage. Maternal sensitivity will be observed during a 15-minute free play session of the mother-baby dyad. During the second home visit, inter-personal neural synchrony in mother-baby dyads will be assessed during a joint attention task (9 minutes). Participants will also be interviewed about their lived experiences with babywearing and increased physical contact with their baby (30-40 minutes). Finally, participants will complete questionnaires about mother-infant bonding, depression and anxiety symptoms, and rate the burden of the protocol.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Baby Carrier Intervention

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Mothers in the intervention group will have the opportunity to choose between two different soft ergonomic baby carriers and will receive instructions on how to use the carrier of their choice. Infants will be placed chest-to-chest in the carrier, supported by the mother's upper torso for a prescribed amount of time during the period of six weeks.

Waitlist Control Group

The waitlist control group will be assessed using the same measures as the intervention group (described above) except for the open-ended interview questions about their lived experiences with regular babywearing and increased physical contact with their baby.

At the end of the second home visit, all waitlist control participants will be offered to choose between the same two ergonomic baby carrier models as the intervention group, and will be provided with the same instructions regarding the recommended frequency and length of use as intervention group participants at the beginning of the study.

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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Baby Carrier Intervention

Mothers in the intervention group will have the opportunity to choose between two different soft ergonomic baby carriers and will receive instructions on how to use the carrier of their choice. Infants will be placed chest-to-chest in the carrier, supported by the mother's upper torso for a prescribed amount of time during the period of six weeks.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* 18 years or older
* be able to communicate in English or French
* diagnosed with a depressive or anxiety disorder (or both) during their intake visit within the Perinatal Multisite Databank (PMD)
* residing in the greater Montreal area
* have given birth to a healthy baby

Exclusion Criteria

* having known alcohol or substance use issues,
* having been diagnosed with psychosis or schizophrenia during the PMD intake assessment, or have had thoughts of harming the self or the baby
* having physical restrictions that may prevent the regular use of a baby carrier
* taking any medications regularly that cause potential participants to feel drowsy or dizzy
* already using a baby carrier with their current baby for more than 5 hours a week
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

FEMALE

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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Brain Canada

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

Sir Mortimer B. Davis - Jewish General Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Eszter Szekely

Co-Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

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Lady Davis Institute of the Jewish General Hospital

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Site Status

Countries

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Canada

Central Contacts

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Eszter Szekely, PhD

Role: CONTACT

Phone: (514) 340-8222

Email: [email protected]

Facility Contacts

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Eszter Szekely, PhD

Role: primary

Other Identifiers

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2024-989

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id