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Previous studies have not focused on how intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy predicts early postnatal child abuse. This study identifies the continuity and spillover effects of IPV during pregnancy on IPV and child abuse and neglect (CAN) at 1-month and 3-month postnatal periods. A total of 822 pregnant women were recruited at the third trimester of pregnancy at two obstetric hospitals in Tokyo, Japan, from June 2016 to September 2017. IPV during pregnancy and IPV and CAN at 1 month and 3 months postnatal were obtained through self-reported questionnaires. Results show that the rate of IPV was highest during pregnancy (16.4%), and there was significant continuance (69.4%) of this occurrence of IPV after childbirth (1 month: 13.9%; 3 months: 13.7%). In addition, the rate of CAN was 20.0% at 1 month postnatal and slightly increased at 3 months postnatal (21.8%). Furthermore, this study indicates that IPV during pregnancy was significantly associated with CAN at 1 month and 3 months postnatal (β =.16 and β =.14) and with IPV at 1 month (β =.68), and subsequently, IPV at 1 month was significantly associated with IPV at 3 months postnatal (β =.56). This study suggests the importance of conducting screenings for IPV during the perinatal period and providing intensive health interventions for abused women to support their parenting from pregnancy to 3 months postnatal to prevent or reduce CAN at 1 month and 3 months postnatal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study identifies the impact of intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy, and childhood maltreatment on mothers' perpetration of child maltreatment on 1‐month postnatal infants. Methods: A longitudinal study was conducted on women in the third trimester of pregnancy in two obstetric hospitals in Tokyo, Japan, from June 2016 to September 2017. Participants were asked to complete online self‐reported questionnaires during their pregnancy period and at 1 month postnatal. The relationship between suffering from IPV during pregnancy, experiencing childhood maltreatment before the age of 18 years, and perpetration of child maltreatment toward infants was measured among mothers using the Violence Against Women Screen and a survey of four and 14 ad hoc questions. To identify the impact of poly‐victimizations of IPV and childhood maltreatment on maternal–infant maltreatment, the study implemented logistic regression models. Results: The data from 533 respondents to the first and second surveys were analyzed. Maternal–infant maltreatment at 1 month postnatal was strongly associated with poly‐victimizations of IPV during pregnancy and childhood maltreatment (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 5.17; p <.001; 95% CI = 2.39–11.20), single victimization of IPV (AOR = 3.43, p <.001, 95% CI = 1.76–6.72), and single victimization of childhood maltreatment (AOR = 1.75, p =.03, 95% CI = 1.04–2.93; neither = reference). Conclusion: The results emphasize the importance of individuating pregnant women with poly‐victimizations of IPV during pregnancy and childhood maltreatment and providing intensive and continuous support for such women to prevent maternal–infant maltreatment after childbirth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intimate partner violence (IPV) causes adverse perinatal mental health outcomes; however, few studies have identified why. We focused on antenatal social support to reveal how it affects the relationship between IPV during pregnancy and mental health outcomes. A prospective cohort study was conducted during the third trimester and 1-month postnatal. The relationship between IPV during pregnancy and antenatal depressive symptoms, which were associated with mother–infant bonding failure and postnatal depressive symptoms, was affected by mother's satisfaction with antenatal social support. Perceived social support for abused women must be increased to prevent antenatal depressive symptoms and adverse postnatal mental health outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study develops a Japanese version of the Woman Abuse Screening Tool, comprising two simple questions, to examine its accuracy and validity. A cohort study involving women in the third trimester of pregnancy and one month after childbirth was conducted in an antenatal clinic in a Tokyo suburb. The Japanese versions of the Index of Spouse Abuse and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale were used to examine the cut-off point, accuracy, and validity of the Woman Abuse Screening Tool. Results showed that the tool demonstrated good accuracy (sensitivity 66.7-71.4%, specificity 89.7%), using an alternative cut-off point (i.e. responses of 'some tension' or 'some difficulty' [2 points] for one item and 'a lot of tension' or 'great difficulty' [1 point] for the other), and good concurrent, convergent, and predictive validity. The results indicated that the Woman Abuse Screening Tool could be useful in Japanese perinatal health settings, as an initial screening tool to detect intimate partner violence efficiently and effectively during pregnancy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the associations between intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy, mother-to-infant bonding failure, and postnatal depressive symptoms at 1 month postnatal. This study also examined if these relationships would be mediated by antenatal depressive symptoms. This study was a prospective cohort study that investigated effects between the third trimester of pregnancy and 1 month after childbirth. The Japanese version of the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA), the Japanese version of the Mother-Infant Bonding Scale (MIBS), and the Japanese version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to measure IPV during pregnancy, bonding failure with infants, and depressive symptoms during pregnancy and the postnatal period respectively. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to find the associations between those four variables. The final path model of the SEM showed good fit with the data. IPV during pregnancy was associated with mother-to-infant bonding failure at 1 month postnatal, whereas IPV during pregnancy was not significantly associated with postnatal depressive symptoms at 1 month postnatal. In addition, this study demonstrated that the associations between IPV during pregnancy, mother-to-infant bonding failure, and postnatal depressive symptoms at 1 month postnatal were mediated by antenatal depressive symptoms. The results of this study indicated the need for interventions for IPV and psychological health care for abused pregnant women to prevent antenatal depressive symptoms in prenatal health settings. Those interventions by perinatal health professionals would help to prevent bonding failure with infants and postnatal depressive symptoms after childbirth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]