Investigating the Effects of Antenatal Maternal Anaemia on Brain Structure in 6-Year-Old South African Children: A Neuroimaging Cohort Study

Motivation: It is unknown whether recent findings linking antenatal maternal anaemia with altered brain structure in toddlers persist to later childhood. Goal(s): This study aimed to determine whether associations of antenatal maternal anaemia with smaller corpus callosum, putamen, and caudate nucleus volumes described in 2–3-year-olds remain at age 6-7 years in the same cohort. Approach: Linear modeling was used to investigate associations between antenatal maternal anaemia status, maternal haemoglobin concentrations, and child brain volumes. Results: Antenatal maternal anaemia was associated with smaller volumes of the corpus callosum and caudate nucleus in school-age children, with comparable adjusted volume differences and coefficients to findings in toddlers. Impact: Evidence that associations of maternal anaemia with brain volumes are consistent and persist from age 2-3 years through to age 6-7 years supports the importance of optimizing antenatal maternal health and reinforces these brain regions as a future research focus.