Sleep deprivation during pregnancy leads to poor fetal outcomes in Sprague-Dawley rats

Daily activity rhythms, sleep, and pregnancy are fundamentally related in the Pacific beetle mimic cockroach, Diploptera punctata

Sleep and pregnancy are contentious bedfellows; sleep disorders and disturbances are associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, although much is still unknown about this relationship. Sleep and pregnancy have been studied in many models, but most focus heavily on mammals. However, pregnancy is ubiquitous across the animal kingdom - a hallmark of convergent evolution; similarly sleep is a shared feature across diverse species. Here, we present an ideal model in which to study the dynamics between sleep and pregnancy in invertebrates. The Pacific beetle mimic cockroach, Diploptera punctata, is a viviparous cockroach species that uses milk proteins to nourish its young with a broodsac over a three month pregnancy. However, little is known about the relationship between this unique reproductive biology and daily rhythms of activity and sleep. We established that D. punctata displayed a peak in activity shortly following sunset, with males significantly more active than females. When scavenging behavior was examined, males and non-pregnant females emerged more often and traveled further from a shelter compared to pregnant females, suggesting reduced risk-taking behavior in late pregnancy. Chronic disturbance of sleep during pregnancy negatively impacted embryo development by increasing gestational duration and decreasing the transcription of milk proteins. These findings indicate that sleep is key to embryo development and that pregnancy has a significant impact on the daily rhythms of activity in Diploptera punctata. More broadly, we present a tractable invertebrate model for understanding the relationship between sleep and pregnancy, which will aid in the exploration of the poorly understood interface between these two ubiquitous and highly conserved traits.

Sleep quality during pregnancy and fetal growth: A prospective cohort study

The aim of this study is to investigate the association between sleep quality during pregnancy and fetal growth. Pregnant women and their fetuses at 16-20 gestational weeks in Nantong Maternal and Child Health Hospital were recruited. Women were classified as having "good sleep quality" (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score ≤ 5) and "poor sleep quality" (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index score > 5) according to the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores. The fetal growth was evaluated by three ultrasonographic examinations, birth weight and birth length. We used general linear model and multiple linear regression models to estimate the associations. A total of 386 pairs of mother and infant were included in the data analysis. After adjusting for gestational weight gain, anxiety and depression, fetuses in the good sleep quality group had greater abdominal circumference (p = 0.039 for 28-31+6 weeks gestation, p = 0.012 for 37-40+6 weeks gestation) and femur length (p = 0.014 for 28-31+6 weeks gestation, p = 0.041for 37-40+6 weeks gestation) at 28-31+6 weeks gestation and 37-40+6 weeks gestation, and increased femur length (p = 0.007) at 28-31+6 weeks gestation. Birth weights (p = 0.018) were positively associated with sleep quality. Poor sleep quality was associated with poor intrauterine physical development, decreased abdominal circumference and femur length, and lower birth weight after adjusting for confounding factors. Attention to the fetal growth of pregnant women with poor sleep quality has the potential to decrease the risk of adverse fetal outcomes.

Maternal and Fetal Health Risks Among Female Military Aviation Officers

INTRODUCTION: Military aviation poses unique occupational risks, including exposures to intermittent hypoxia, high gravitational force, and toxic materials, in addition to circadian disruption, cosmic radiation, and ergonomic stressors also present in commercial flight. We sought to investigate whether a military aviation officer's career is associated with adverse maternal or fetal health outcomes.METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of female aviation and nonaviation officers in the Military Health System from October 2002 to December 2019. Exposure was identified as assignment of an aviation occupation code. Maternal and fetal health outcomes were identified by International Classification of Diseases codes from medical records. Regression analysis was used to estimate adjusted relative risks (aRR).RESULTS: Included in the study were 25,929 active-duty female officers, with 46,323 recorded pregnancies and 32,853 recorded deliveries; 2131 pregnancies were diagnosed in aviation officers. Pregnant aviation officers had a decreased risk of composite adverse pregnancy outcomes [aRR 0.82 (0.73-0.92)], including gestational diabetes [aRR 0.69 (0.57-0.85)] and gestational hypertension [aRR 0.84 (0.71-0.99)]. Pregnant aviation officers had a decreased risk of depression prior to delivery [aRR 0.43 (0.35-0.53)] and hyperemesis gravidarum [aRR 0.74 (0.57-0.96)], but an increased risk of placental complications [aRR 1.15 (1.02-1.30)] and fetal growth restriction [aRR 1.36 (1.16-1.60)].DISCUSSION: Pregnant military aviation officers have an increased risk of placental complications and fetal growth restriction in spite of a lower risk of gestational diabetes and gestational hypertension. Further research is needed to determine how flight-related occupations impact pregnancy.Stark CM, Sorensen IS, Royall M, Dorr M, Brown J, Dobson N, Salzman S, Susi A, Hisle-Gorman E, Huggins BH, Nylund CM. Maternal and fetal health risks among female military aviation officers. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2024; 95(9):675-682.