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The burden of perinatal mental illness is a significant global concern, affecting approximately 10–20% of women at this stage of life. It is well recognised that Rural Australia has far less health services and mental health specialists per capita than metropolitan regions.
Maternal psychological distress is related to poorer physical and mental health as well as child developmental problems. Interventions that optimise maternal mental health and wellbeing during the "first 1,000 days" of life should have wide-reaching benefits for the mother and her child.
Although social factors and culture are significant determinants of health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, little is known academically about key interpersonal and social experiences of this population during the perinatal period, or how early attachments are formed through culture. This study addressed this gap in the literature.
Positive maternal mental health during the perinatal period contributes to general well-being and positive emotional bonds with the child, encouraging an optimal developmental trajectory. Online interventions to enhance maternal well-being and develop coping skills, such as meditation-based interventions, can be a low-cost way to improve mother and child outcomes.
Growing evidence from preclinical studies, epidemiology, and randomized controlled trials supports a causal role for diet quality in mental disorder risk, and clinical psychiatric guidelines now place diet, along with other life-style behaviors, as foundational treatment targets for mood disorders.
A group of 19 Aboriginal women from South Australia, along with researchers from The Kids Research Institute Australia, have developed a culturally responsive, evidence-based model of care to support Aboriginal women with cardiometabolic complications in pregnancy in SA.
Syphilis remains a global public health concern, particularly in pregnancy due to the risk of congenital syphilis. The WHO recommends benzathine penicillin G (BPG) as the standard treatment in pregnant women, whilst the optimal dosing strategy has not been established, particularly in relation to the impact of gestational age. This study sought to characterize the pharmacokinetics (PK) of a three-dose regimen of intramuscular BPG, given at weekly intervals, in pregnant women with syphilis.
Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy with major maternal and fetal consequences. While the molecular basis of early-onset preeclampsia is well studied, the mechanisms underlying late-onset disease-and how they differ by fetal sex-remain poorly understood. Placental transcriptomic profiling at term can reveal persistent molecular alterations reflecting cumulative disease processes.
Gut microbiota play a critical role in long-term health by supporting metabolism, immune function, inflammation regulation, and neurological development via the gut–brain axis. Beneficial bacteria enhance gut integrity through short-chain fatty acid production, pathogen inhibition, and mucosal barrier support.
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a lifelong disability of varying severity that occurs among individuals prenatally exposed to alcohol. Among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Indigenous) Australians, the effects of colonisation and ongoing racism could increase the risk of alcohol consumption during pregnancy.