Associations between holding, seeing alone and neither seeing nor holding and outcomes
| Held and saw baby % (n) | Saw but did not hold baby % (n) | Neither saw nor held baby % (n) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| N=394 | N=40 | N=34 | |
| Mental and physical health 3 months after birth (n=468) | |||
| Depression (p=0.501) | 44.4 (175) | 35.0 (14) | 41.2 (14) |
| Anxiety** (p=0.004) | 41.4 (163) | 15.0 (6) | 44.1 (15) |
| PTSD symptoms* (p=0.023) | 53.8 (212) | 35.0 (14) | 38.2 (13) |
| Poor physical health (p=0.397) | 12.4 (49) | 12.5 (5) | 20.6 (7) |
| Mental and physical health 9 months after birth (n=468) | |||
| Depression (p=0.214) | 25.6 (101) | 15.0 (6) | 17.6 (6) |
| Anxiety** (p=0.010) | 32.7 (129) | 10.0 (4) | 26.5 (9) |
| PTSD symptoms* (p=0.035) | 38.3 (151) | 20.0 (8) | 26.5 (9) |
| Poor physical health** (p=0.008) | 4.3 (17) | 0 (0) | 14.7 (5) |
| Relationship difficulties 3 months after birth | |||
| With partner (p=0.722) | 17.5 (69) | 15.5 (5) | 17.6 (6) |
| With family (p=0.067) | 22.8 (90) | 7.5 (3) | 17.6 (6) |
| Relationship difficulties 9 months after birth | |||
| With partner (p=0.804) | 8.9 (35) | 10.0 (4) | 5.9 (2) |
| With family* (p=0.019) | 14.0 (55) | 0 (0) | 5.9 (2) |
| Associations between seeing and holding the baby on outcomes in final models | |||
| Holding the baby (n=394) ORadj (95% CI) | Seeing the baby (n=434) ORadj (95% CI) | ||
| Mental and physical health 3 months after birth (n=468) | |||
| Depression | 1.42 (0.71 to 2.84) | 0.70 (0.26 to 1.86) | |
| Anxiety | 3.80** (1.55 to 9.35) | 0.19** (0.06 to 0.60) | |
| PTSD symptoms | 2.05* (1.02 to 4.12) | 0.65 (0.24 to 1.75) | |
| Poor physical health | 1.13 (0.41 to 3.11) | 0.40 (0.11 to 1.46) | |
| Mental and physical health 9 months after birth (n=468) | |||
| Depression | 1.85 (0.75 to 4.59) | 0.78 (0.22 to 2.74) | |
| Anxiety | 4.29** (1.49 to 12.38) | 0.27* (0.07 to 0.98) | |
| PTSD symptoms | 2.21 (0.98 to 5.00) | 0.62 (0.20 to 1.90) | |
| Poor physical health | † | † | |
| Relationship difficulties 3 months after birth | |||
| With partner | 1.41 (0.53 to 3.76) | 0.56 (0.15 to 2.08) | |
| With family | 3.52* (1.05 to 11.75) | 0.34 (0.08 to 1.51) | |
| Relationship difficulties 9 months after birth | |||
| With partner | 0.82 (0.27 to 2.48) | 1.75 (0.29 to 10.39) | |
| With family | † | † | |
ORadj: with adjustment for multiple pregnancy, ethnicity and fertility treatment.
*p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001.
†Group sizes insufficient for analysis.
PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder.