Abstracts - Posters
Project Ice Storm: Physiological and Behavioural Reactions to an Acute Stressor in Children Exposed In Utero to Varying Levels of Prenatal Maternal Stress
Kimberly Munro1, David P. Laplante, Alain Brunet and Suzanne King
1Douglas Hospital Research Centre
munro_kimberly@hotmail.com
Animal studies demonstrate that elevated maternal cortisol levels due to PNMS negatively effects the development of the offspring’s HPA axis and their behavior. Human studies, however, focus on subjective stress measures (maternal anxiety), whose effect may be tainted by genetic loading. Research has demonstrated that the effects of PNMS varies with the timing of the exposure, with early-mid gestation exposure most critical. In humans, a need exists to study the effects of PNMS, independent of the mothers’ own personality on children’s hormonal and behavioral development. A well-accepted consequence of global climate change is the increase in frequency of extreme weather events. One such event was the 1998 Ice Storm. The purpose of the present study is to clarify the role of PNMS, resulting from a natural disaster, by distinguishing how levels of maternal objective exposure, subjective reaction, post-event cortisol and the timing of the stressor influence children’s hormonal and behavioral responses to an acute stressor (vaccination). It is hypothesized that children of mothers who experienced high objective PNMS will display, in response to their vaccination: (1) higher anticipatory cortisol levels before the vaccination; (2) increased acute cortisol responses; (3) longer returns to baseline; and (4) increased behavioral reactions compared to children whose mothers were exposed to low objective PNMS. These results should be more pronounced in children exposed early during pregnancy. Results of this study will have wide applicability when devising appropriate interventions to limit risks to pregnant women and their unborn children following objective stressors such as natural disasters.
2005-04-06 |
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