Biomedical subjects

R H M de Groot

Publications and source records attributed to R H M de Groot.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Differences in cognitive performance during pregnancy and early motherhood.

BACKGROUND: Pregnancy has often been associated with cognitive deficits, but results are equivocal and little is known about how these deficits progress with time. METHOD: In the present study, the cognitive performance of 57 pregnant women was compared with that of 50 non-pregnant women matched for age and education, using a well-validated neurocognitive test battery at weeks 14, 17, 29, and 36 of pregnancy, and 32 weeks postpartum in the pregnant group and at comparable times in the non-pregnant group. RESULTS: Memory encoding and retrieval, as assessed with a word learning task, were significantly lower in the pregnant group than in the control group. This difference was still present at 32 weeks after delivery. The two groups did not differ in complex speed of information processing at any of the test moments; however, general speed of information processing was significantly compromised during early motherhood (week 32 postpartum). CONCLUSION: Thus, memory performance is poorer during pregnancy and early motherhood, and general speed of information processing is slower during early motherhood.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

Alpha-linolenic acid supplementation during human pregnancy does not effect cognitive functioning.

Increasing evidence suggests a positive association between docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) and cognitive performance. In addition, pregnancy is associated with a reduction of the DHA status and cognitive deficits. In the current study, cognition was assessed in pregnant women receiving a margarine enriched with alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3n-3, the ultimate dietary precursor of DHA) and some linoleic acid (LA, 18:2n-6, to prevent a possible reduction in n-6 fatty acids). A control group received a margarine enriched with LA only. ALA supplementation hardly affected the maternal DHA status and no significant differences were found in cognitive performance between the two groups. This indicates that ALA supplementation during pregnancy does not affect cognitive performance during and 32 weeks after gestation. At week 14 of pregnancy and 32 weeks after delivery, higher plasma DHA levels were associated with lower cognitive performance as indicated by longer reaction times on the finger precuing task (partial correlation coefficients 0.3705 and 0.4633, respectively, P<0.01). Since this could imply an unexpected adverse association between DHA and certain aspects of cognitive functioning this certainly needs further investigation.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Selective attention deficits during human pregnancy.

Using a longitudinal design we provide evidence that selective attention - a key component of cognition concerned with selection and preparation - is compromised during pregnancy. Selective attention was operationalized by means of the finger precuing technique, which selectively prepares two of four finger responses. The precuing benefit was taken as a measure of selective attention. Pregnant women showed a significant smaller precuing benefit at week 36 of pregnancy than did the control women, indicating loss of selective attention. Thirty-two weeks after childbirth this performance decrement had vanished, reflecting a functional recovery.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Increased risk of postpartum depressive symptoms is associated with slower normalization after pregnancy of the functional docosahexaenoic acid status.

Observational studies suggest an association between a low docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) status after pregnancy and the occurrence of postpartum depression. However, a comparison of the actual biochemical plasma DHA status among women with and without postpartum depression has not been reported yet. The contents of DHA and of its status indicator n-6 docosapentaenoic acid (n-6DPA, 22:5n-6) were measured in the plasma phospholipids of 112 women at delivery and 32 weeks postpartum. At this latter time point, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) questionnaire was completed to measure postpartum depression retrospectively. The EPDS cutoff score of 10 was used to define 'possibly depressed' (EPDS score > or =10) and non-depressed women (EPDS score <10). Odds ratios (OR) were calculated using a multiple logistic regression analysis with the EPDS cutoff score as dependent and fatty acid concentrations and ratio's as explanatory variables, while controlling for different covariables. The results demonstrated that the postpartum increase of the functional DHA status, expressed as the ratio DHA/n-6DPA, was significantly lower in the 'possibly depressed' group compared to the non-depressed group (2.34+/-5.56 versus 4.86+/-5.41, respectively; OR=0.88, P=0.03). Lactating women were not more predisposed than non-lactating women were to develop depressive symptoms. From this observation it seems that the availability of DHA in the postpartum period is less in women developing depressive symptoms. Although further studies are needed for confirmation, increasing the dietary DHA intake during pregnancy and postpartum, seems prudent.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Memory performance, but not information processing speed, may be reduced during early pregnancy.

Several studies have investigated aspects of cognitive functioning during late pregnancy or in the period around delivery. The present paper describes a controlled study of neurocognitive functioning in an early phase of pregnancy (14 weeks). Seventy-one pregnant women and 57 control subjects matched for age and education were tested with a cognitive test battery. Intentional learning was tested with the Verbal Learning Test, retrieval from semantic memory with the Fluency Test, and speed of information processing with the Concept Shifting Test, the Stroop test, and the Letter Digit Substitution Test. Results show that performance on tests measuring intentional learning and retrieval from semantic memory were lower in the pregnant group during early pregnancy as compared to a closely matched nonpregnant group. In contrast, speed of information processing was not different between the two groups. The differences observed in memory performance were not large and further research is needed to establish their clinical significance. In addition, the results should be interpreted with care, because our study has a cross-sectional design, which has limitations concerning the fact that preexisting performance differences might be possible. Therefore, longitudinal studies are essential to ascertain clear associations between pregnancy and cognitive performance.

Adult↗