Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review
IntroductionNearly three quarters of stillbirths and neonatal deaths occur in infants born prematurely. The mothers of these children may be at increased risk of developing mental health difficulties as a result of their premature labour and/or subsequent loss.MethodsThis systematic review was condu...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1544485/full |
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| author | Semra Worrall Elana Payne Elana Payne Rebecca E. Fellows Rebecca E. Fellows Olivia Pike Naomi H. Carlisle Jenny Carter Anja Wittkowski Karen Burgess Karen Burgess Claire Storey Laura A. Magee Peter von Dadelszen Paul Christiansen Victoria Fallon Asma Khalil Asma Khalil Sergio A. Silverio Sergio A. Silverio |
| author_facet | Semra Worrall Elana Payne Elana Payne Rebecca E. Fellows Rebecca E. Fellows Olivia Pike Naomi H. Carlisle Jenny Carter Anja Wittkowski Karen Burgess Karen Burgess Claire Storey Laura A. Magee Peter von Dadelszen Paul Christiansen Victoria Fallon Asma Khalil Asma Khalil Sergio A. Silverio Sergio A. Silverio |
| author_sort | Semra Worrall |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | IntroductionNearly three quarters of stillbirths and neonatal deaths occur in infants born prematurely. The mothers of these children may be at increased risk of developing mental health difficulties as a result of their premature labour and/or subsequent loss.MethodsThis systematic review was conducted to understand the psychological experiences of mothers who gave birth prematurely to a baby who subsequently dies as a result of an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death. Ten databases were searched. Any studies which included women who had suffered a perinatal bereavement as a result of preterm labour and birth, in any country, and in any language were eligible to be included. Studies focusing on antepartum stillbirth or in utero death were excluded due to not having the element of preterm labour and/or birth within the studies. Risk of bias was to be assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme.ResultsFollowing the screening of citations, no studies were eligible for inclusion in the review. The majority of studies were excluded due to a lack of distinction in terms of intrapartum or antepartum stillbirth, or grouping of types of perinatal loss. Had the inclusion criteria been less stringent and the three most common reasons for exclusion been removed, 19 studies would have been eligible for inclusion in the review, and we present a brief summary of these findings.DiscussionThese review findings highlight the need for more research into the psychological experiences of mothers of preterm infants whose baby subsequently dies, whereby future studies should consider routine reporting of gestational age. To address the identified gaps, future research should consider alternative methods or broader inclusion criteria to capture relevant data. Emphasising the importance of reporting gestational age and distinguishing between types of perinatal loss will enhance the specificity of research findings. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-908ce8dd95e2449caf5d16ebb007ed9d |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1664-0640 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj-art-908ce8dd95e2449caf5d16ebb007ed9d2025-08-20T02:32:06ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychiatry1664-06402025-06-011610.3389/fpsyt.2025.15444851544485Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic reviewSemra Worrall0Elana Payne1Elana Payne2Rebecca E. Fellows3Rebecca E. Fellows4Olivia Pike5Naomi H. Carlisle6Jenny Carter7Anja Wittkowski8Karen Burgess9Karen Burgess10Claire Storey11Laura A. Magee12Peter von Dadelszen13Paul Christiansen14Victoria Fallon15Asma Khalil16Asma Khalil17Sergio A. Silverio18Sergio A. Silverio19Department of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United KingdomDepartment of Women & Children’s Health, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDivision of Methodologies, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care, King’s College London, London, United KingdomSchool of Health Sciences, College of Medicine and Health, Bangor University, Bangor, United KingdomDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United KingdomDivision of Methodologies, Florence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery & Palliative Care, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Women & Children’s Health, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDivision of Psychology and Mental Health, School of Health Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United KingdomPETALS: The Baby Loss Counselling Charity, Cambridge, United KingdomPatient and Participant Involvement and Engagement Group for Perinatal Bereavement, Trauma, and Loss, King’s College London, London, United KingdomPatient and Participant Involvement and Engagement Group for Perinatal Bereavement, Trauma, and Loss, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Women & Children’s Health, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Women & Children’s Health, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King’s College London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United KingdomDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United KingdomFetal Medicine Unit, Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust, Liverpool, United Kingdom0Fetal Medicine Unit, St. George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, University of London, London, United KingdomDepartment of Psychology, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United KingdomDepartment of Women & Children’s Health, School of Life Course & Population Sciences, King’s College London, London, United KingdomIntroductionNearly three quarters of stillbirths and neonatal deaths occur in infants born prematurely. The mothers of these children may be at increased risk of developing mental health difficulties as a result of their premature labour and/or subsequent loss.MethodsThis systematic review was conducted to understand the psychological experiences of mothers who gave birth prematurely to a baby who subsequently dies as a result of an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death. Ten databases were searched. Any studies which included women who had suffered a perinatal bereavement as a result of preterm labour and birth, in any country, and in any language were eligible to be included. Studies focusing on antepartum stillbirth or in utero death were excluded due to not having the element of preterm labour and/or birth within the studies. Risk of bias was to be assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme.ResultsFollowing the screening of citations, no studies were eligible for inclusion in the review. The majority of studies were excluded due to a lack of distinction in terms of intrapartum or antepartum stillbirth, or grouping of types of perinatal loss. Had the inclusion criteria been less stringent and the three most common reasons for exclusion been removed, 19 studies would have been eligible for inclusion in the review, and we present a brief summary of these findings.DiscussionThese review findings highlight the need for more research into the psychological experiences of mothers of preterm infants whose baby subsequently dies, whereby future studies should consider routine reporting of gestational age. To address the identified gaps, future research should consider alternative methods or broader inclusion criteria to capture relevant data. Emphasising the importance of reporting gestational age and distinguishing between types of perinatal loss will enhance the specificity of research findings.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1544485/fullpreterm birthneonatal deathintrapartum stillbirthgestational ageperinatal mental healthempty systematic review |
| spellingShingle | Semra Worrall Elana Payne Elana Payne Rebecca E. Fellows Rebecca E. Fellows Olivia Pike Naomi H. Carlisle Jenny Carter Anja Wittkowski Karen Burgess Karen Burgess Claire Storey Laura A. Magee Peter von Dadelszen Paul Christiansen Victoria Fallon Asma Khalil Asma Khalil Sergio A. Silverio Sergio A. Silverio Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review Frontiers in Psychiatry preterm birth neonatal death intrapartum stillbirth gestational age perinatal mental health empty systematic review |
| title | Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review |
| title_full | Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review |
| title_fullStr | Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review |
| title_short | Women’s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death: an empty systematic review |
| title_sort | women s psychological experiences of preterm labour and birth which results in an intrapartum stillbirth or a neonatal death an empty systematic review |
| topic | preterm birth neonatal death intrapartum stillbirth gestational age perinatal mental health empty systematic review |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1544485/full |
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