Associations between social support, mental wellbeing, self-efficacy and technology use in first-time antenatal women: data from the BaBBLeS cohort study

Background: Information and communication technologies are used increasingly to facilitate social networks and support women during the perinatal period. This paper presents data on how technology use affects the association between women’s social support and, (i) mental wellbeing and, (ii) self-efficacy in the antenatal period. Methods: Data were collected as part of an ongoing study - the BaBBLeS study - exploring the effect of a pregnancy and maternity software application (app) on maternal wellbeing and self-efficacy. Between September 2016 and February 2017, we aimed to recruit first-time pregnant women at 12–16 gestation weeks in five maternity sites across England and asked them to complete questionnaires. Outcomes included maternal mental wellbeing (Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale), and antenatal self-efficacy (antenatal version of the Tool to Measure Parenting Self-Efficacy). Other variables assessed were perceived social support (Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support), general technology use (adapted from Media and Technology Usage and Attitudes Scale). Potential confounders were age, ethnicity, education, socioeconomic deprivation, employment, relationship status and recruitment site. Linear regression models were developed to analyse the relationship between social support and the outcomes. Results: Participants (n = 492, median age = 28 years) were predominantly white British (64.6%). Half of them had a degree or higher degree (49.3%), most were married/living with a partner (83.6%) and employed (86.2%). Median (LQ-UQ) overall scores were 81.0 (74.0–84.0) for social support (range 12–84), 5.1 (4.7–5.4) for technology use (range 1–6), 54.0 (48.0–60.0) for mental well-being (range 14–70), and 319.0 (295.5–340) for self-efficacy (range 0–360). Social support was significantly associated with antenatal mental well-being adjusting for confounders [adj R2 = 0.13, p < .001]. The addition of technology use did not alter this model [adj R2 = 0.13, p < .001]. Social support was also significantly associated with self-efficacy after adjustment [adj R2 = 0.14, p < .001]; technology had limited impact on this association [adj R2 = 0.13, p < .001]. Conclusions: Social support is associated with mental well-being and self-efficacy in antenatal first-time mothers. This association was not significantly affected by general technology use as measured in our survey. Future work should investigate whether pregnancy-specific technologies yield greater potential to enhance the perceived social support, wellbeing and self-efficacy of antenatal women

Trapped xenon in meteorites

Xenon in meteorites can be resolved into a mixture of component X and trapped xenon with the following composition,124Xe:126Xe: 128 Xe: 130Xe: 131Xe: 132Xe: 134Xe: 136Xe = 0.0276: 0.0248: 0.501: 1.00: 5.04: 6.19: 2.31: 1.90. This trapped meteoritic xenon is distinct from xenon trapped in the average carbonaceous chondrite which is shown to represent the average composition of the total xenon in meteorites containing various mixtures of component X and trapped meteoritic xenon

Influence of PTSD and MDD on Somatic Symptoms in Treatment-Seeking Military Members and Veterans

Introduction: Using a treatment-seeking sample of military personnel and Veterans (n = 736), the objectives were to determine the prevalence of somatic symptoms in the sample and investigate whether the mean severity of somatic symptoms differed between common probable psychiatric conditions and comorbidity. Methods: The Patient Health Questionnaire–15 was used to determine somatic symptom severity. One-way analyses of variance and Tukey post hoc tests determined whether the severity of somatic symptom categories (musculoskeletal pain, neurological, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, sleep, and lethargy) and total somatic symptom severity differed significantly between groups. Results: Most participants (80%) reported moderate to high levels of somatic symptoms, and more than half the sample had probable comorbid post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder (MDD). Mean total somatic symptom severity for the comorbid PTSD–MDD group was high and differed significantly from that of the PTSD- and MDD-only groups (medium severity) and the group with neither condition (mild severity). Severity of most mean somatic symptom categories differed significantly between comorbid PTSD and MDD for all other groups. Discussion: Results suggest that the presentation of comorbid PTSD and MDD is more detrimental in terms of somatic symptom severity than that of either disorder separately. Although there were some differences in the severity of specific somatic symptom types between the PTSD-only and the MDD-only groups, overall severity did not differ. After diagnosis of a mental health condition, military personnel and Veterans should be screened for somatic symptoms. Article is in English Introduction : Les objectifs de cette recherche basée sur un échantillon de personnel militaire et de vétérans (N = 736) étaient de déterminer l’importance des symptômes somatiques et d’étudier leur sévérité en comparaison avec des conditions psychiatriques et des comorbidités. Méthodologie : Le Questionnaire 15 de santé du patient a été employé afin de déterminer l’ampleur des symptômes somatiques. Une analyse de variance à variable unique suivie de tests Tukey post-hoc ont permis de déterminer si la sévérité des catégories de symptômes somatiques (douleur musculosquelettique, neurologique, cardiovasculaire, gastrointestinal, sommeil et léthargie) ainsi que la mesure selon laquelle ces symptômes différaient entre les groupes. Résultats : La plupart (80%) des participants ont rapporté des niveaux de symptômes somatiques entre moyen et élevé. De plus, au-delà de la moitié de l’échantillon vivant avec une probable comorbidité de SSPT et de BM. La sévérité moyenne totale des symptômes somatiques du groupe comorbide SSPT-BM était élevée et significative vis-à-vis des groupes vivant avec uniquement le SSPT ou une BM (sévérité moyenne) ou aucune des conditions (basse sévérité). La sévérité de la plupart des moyennes des symptômes somatiques différait grandement entre le groupe comorbide SSPT-BM et les autres groupes. Discussion : Les résultats suggèrent que la présence d’une comorbidité SSPT-BM est plus nuisible en termes de symptômes somatiques que chacun des troubles vécu séparément. Bien qu’il y ait des différences dans la sévérité des types de symptômes somatiques vis-à-vis des groupes vivant uniquement le SSPT ou la BM, la sévérité globale demeurait la même. Avec le diagnostic d’une de ces conditions, le personnel militaire et les vétérans devraient être évalués pour des symptômes somatiques