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Cited by 99Grief, Bereavement, and Mental HealthMaternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and PostpartumGlobal Maternal and Child Health

Psychological impact of stillbirth on fathers in the subsequent pregnancy and puerperium

Open access
Turton, Penelope, Badenhorst, William, Hughes, Patricia, Ward, Julia, Riches, Samantha, White, Sarah·2006·British Journal of Psychiatry
DOI 10.1192/bjp.188.2.165
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Abstract

Background: Approximately 1 in 200 UK pregnancies ends in stillbirth. Although serious psychological effects of stillbirth on mothers are well established, much less is known about the impact of such loss on fathers. Aims: To assess the psychological morbidity of fathers in the pregnancy and post-partum year subsequentto a stillbirth, to test within-couple effects and to identify risk factors. Method: This was a community-based cohort study of 38 pregnant couples whose previous pregnancy had ended in stillbirth, and 38 pair-matched controls. Psychological assessments took place antenatally and at 6 weeks, 6 months and 1 year postnatally. Results: Fathers in the index group experienced significant levels of anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder antenatally, but all of their symptoms remitted postnatally (after the birth of a live baby). Fathers' symptom levels were lower than those of mothers at all time points. In contrast to mothers, fathers experienced greater anxiety when a subsequent pregnancy (following stillbirth) was delayed. Conclusions: The vulnerability of fathers to psychological distress during the pregnancy after a stillbirth needs to be recognised.

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  • Turton et al. found that nine out of 34 fathers who were non-drinkers reported increased alcohol consumption.

    “Turton et al. [32] assessed the psychological morbidity of fathers during a pregnancy subsequent to a stillbirth, and found that nine out of 34 fathers who were non-drinkers reported increased alcohol consumption”

    From The impact of pregnancy loss on men’s health and wellbeing: a systematic review (2017) · cites this paper as [32]

    The 'Fathers’ coping strategies' section reports that 9 of 34 fathers increased their alcohol consumption after the loss, but describes those 34 as 'not non-drinkers.' The citing sentence reverses that qualification by calling them non-drinkers. No page number is available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.89)

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  • Gestational age at time of loss was not related to the health or wellbeing outcomes of men.

    “gestational age at time of loss was not related to the health or wellbeing outcomes of men [26, 28, 29, 31, 32].”

    From The impact of pregnancy loss on men’s health and wellbeing: a systematic review (2017) · cites this paper as [32]

    In “Levels of psychological symptoms” (page not specified), the paper reports that gestation of the lost pregnancy was not significantly associated with fathers’ depression, anxiety or PTSD scores at the antenatal assessment. The claim is broader than that finding: it refers to men’s health or wellbeing outcomes generally and omits the reported trend toward worse outcomes after a third-trimester loss. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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  • Following pregnancy/neonatal loss, men engage more frequently than women in compensatory behaviours (such as increased substance use), score higher on avoidance scales, and experience difficulty in approaching or accessing support services.

    “Following pregnancy/neonatal loss, men engage more frequently than women in compensatory behaviours (such as increased substance use), score higher on avoidance scales, and experience difficulty in approaching or accessing support services [37–41].”

    From Men’s grief following pregnancy loss and neonatal loss: a systematic review and emerging theoretical model (2020) · cites this paper as [40]

    The ‘Fathers’ coping strategies’ section reports increased alcohol consumption in some fathers after stillbirth and says some would have welcomed further support. It does not show that men used substances more often than women or had difficulty accessing services. The paper also does not report higher avoidance-scale scores for fathers; its comparison of symptom measures found higher scores for mothers, though the differences were not significant. No page numbers are available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • In studies of men whose partners were pregnant following a loss, anxiety and depressive symptoms tended to be high antenatally but were likely to subside postnatally.

    “The studies which examined men whose partners were pregnant following a loss indicated similar results, in that anxiety and depressive symptoms tended to be high antenatally but these were likely to subside postnatally [31–33].”

    From The impact of pregnancy loss on men’s health and wellbeing: a systematic review (2017) · cites this paper as [32]

  • Turton et al. found that three fathers reported that they had used illegal drugs.

    “three fathers reported that they had used illegal drugs.”

    From The impact of pregnancy loss on men’s health and wellbeing: a systematic review (2017) · cites this paper as [32]

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Authors
Turton, P., Badenhorst, W., Hughes, P., Ward, J., Riches, S., & White, S.
Affiliations
St George's, University of London (GB)
Corresponding author
Turton, Penelope
ORCID
Venue
British Journal of Psychiatry
Publisher
Royal College of Psychiatrists
Published
2006-02
Volume
188
Issue
2
Pages
165-172
ISSN
  • 0007-1250 (ISSN-L)
  • 1472-1465
DOI
10.1192/bjp.188.2.165
OpenAlex
W2091966526
Cited by
98
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 2
FWCI
4.79
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
www.cambridge.org/core/terms (unspecified, 4353 d)
Locations
  • The British Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Global Maternal and Child Health
Keywords
stillbirth, fathers, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, subsequent pregnancy, postpartum period, couples, risk factors
MeSH terms
Adaptation, Psychological, Adult, Anxiety, Depression, Family Relations, Fathers, Female, Humans, Male, Mothers, Pregnancy, Risk Factors, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress, Psychological, Time Factors, Cohort Studies, Postpartum Period, Stillbirth

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