2026-06-14T03:31:39Zhttps://repisalud.isciii.es/rest/oai/request

oai:repisalud.isciii.es:20.500.12105/268372025-12-18T12:57:26Zcom_20.500.12105_19604com_20.500.12105_2051col_20.500.12105_19605

00925njm 22002777a 4500 dc Ballesteros, Cristina author Paternina-Die, María author Martínez-García, Magdalena author López-Montoya, Gonzalo author Noguero, Inés author Desco, Manuel author Vilarroya, Oscar author de Blas, Daniel Martín author Carmona, Susana author 2025-03-07 Childbirth is a life-changing event in a mother's life. While the transition to motherhood has recently been recognized as one of the most neuroplastic periods in adulthood, no study has yet explored whether the hippocampus and amygdala change during the peripartum in relation to childbirth experience and perinatal depression symptoms. In this longitudinal neuroimaging study, we assessed 88 first-time gestational mothers in late pregnancy and early postpartum and 30 nulliparous control women. We used optimized high-resolution MRI scans to quantify volumetric changes in the hippocampus and amygdala, along with their substructures. We found that increases in depression symptoms during the peripartum were positively correlated with changes in the right amygdala. A more challenging birth experience was associated with bilateral increases in hippocampal volume. These findings show that studying the neuroanatomical changes during the transition to motherhood can inform not only about adaptive processes but also about potential vulnerabilities, highlighting the importance of tracking perinatal experiences to enhance women's health. Sci Adv. 2025 Mar 7;11(10):eadt5619. Science Advances 40043136 https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12105/26837 Linking birth experience and perinatal depression symptoms to neuroanatomical changes in hippocampus and amygdala.