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Vagal tone in infants of depressed mothers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 March 2009

Tiffany Field ,
Jeffrey Pickens ,
Nathan A. Fox ,
Thomas Nawrocki  and
Jeanette Gonzalez
Tiffany Field*
Affiliation:
Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine
Jeffrey Pickens
Affiliation:
James Madison University
Nathan A. Fox
Affiliation:
University of Maryland, Institute for Child Study
Thomas Nawrocki
Affiliation:
Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine
Jeanette Gonzalez
Affiliation:
Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine
*
Tiffany Field, Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine, P.O. Box 016820, Miami, FL 33101.
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Abstract

Emotional reactivity and expressivity in infants have been previously correlated with vagal tone. This study investigated vagal tone of 3- and 6-month-old infants of depressed mothers. Vagal tone did not differ for infants of depressed versus nondepressed mothers at 3 months, but lower vagal tone was noted in infants of depressed versus nondepressed mothers at 6 months. The developmental increase in vagal tone that occurred between 3 and 6 months for infants of nondepressed mothers did not occur for infants of depressed mothers. Correlation analyses suggested that higher vagal tone at 6 months was related to more vocalizations and more optimal neurological scores.

Type
Articles
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 7 , Issue 2 , Spring 1995 , pp. 227 - 231
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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