The Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO)-Wide Cohort.

The Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO)-Wide Cohort Study (EWC), a collaborative research design comprising 69 cohorts in 31 consortia, was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in 2016 to improve children's health in the United States. The EWC harmonizes extant data and collects new data using a standardized protocol, the ECHO-Wide Cohort Data Collection Protocol (EWCP). EWCP visits occur at least once per life stage, but the frequency and timing of the visits vary across cohorts. As of March 4, 2022, the EWC cohorts contributed data from 60,553 children and consented 29,622 children for new EWCP data and biospecimen collection. The median (interquartile range) age of EWCP-enrolled children was 7.5 years (3.7-11.1). Surveys, interviews, standardized examinations, laboratory analyses, and medical record abstraction are used to obtain information in 5 main outcome areas: pre-, peri-, and postnatal outcomes; neurodevelopment; obesity; airways; and positive health. Exposures include factors at the level of place (e.g., air pollution, neighborhood socioeconomic status), family (e.g., parental mental health), and individuals (e.g., diet, genomics).

A lifespan perspective on depression in the postpartum period in a racially and socioeconomically diverse sample of young mothers.

BACKGROUND: Consistent evidence from retrospective reports and case registry studies indicates that a history of depression is a major risk factor for depression in the peripartum period. However, longitudinal studies with racially and socioeconomically diverse samples of young mothers are lacking, and little is known about developmental patterns of depression across the lifespan that can inform preventive interventions. METHODS: Young primiparous mothers (n = 399, 13-25 years, 81% Black) were recruited from a population-based prospective study that began in childhood. Women reported on depression symptoms for at least 3 years prior to their pregnancy, during pregnancy, and at 4 months postpartum. Linear regression models were used to estimate change in pre-pregnancy depression severity and to evaluate associations between patterns of lifetime history and postpartum depression symptoms. RESULTS: Results revealed high levels of continuity in depression from pregnancy to postpartum, and across multiple years pre-pregnancy to postpartum. Overall, depression severity leading up to pregnancy decreased over time, but patterns of worsening or improving symptoms were not associated with depression severity in the postpartum period. Instead, area under the pre-pregnancy trajectory curve, representing cumulative lifetime depression burden, was uniquely associated with postpartum depression after adjusting for prenatal depression severity. CONCLUSIONS: Depression in the postpartum period should be considered within a lifespan perspective of risk that accumulates before conception. Clinical screening and early interventions are needed in adolescence and young adulthood to prevent the onset and persistence of depressive symptoms that could have long-term implications for peripartum health.

Impact of sedentary behavior and emotional support on prenatal psychological distress and birth outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Abstract. BACKGROUND: Studies have reported mixed findings regarding the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on pregnant women and birth outcomes. This study used a quasi-experimental design to account for potential confounding by sociodemographic characteristics. METHODS: Data were drawn from 16 prenatal cohorts participating in the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program. Women exposed to the pandemic (delivered between 12 March 2020 and 30 May 2021) (n = 501) were propensity-score matched on maternal age, race and ethnicity, and child assigned sex at birth with 501 women who delivered before 11 March 2020. Participants reported on perceived stress, depressive symptoms, sedentary behavior, and emotional support during pregnancy. Infant gestational age (GA) at birth and birthweight were gathered from medical record abstraction or maternal report. RESULTS: After adjusting for propensity matching and covariates (maternal education, public assistance, employment status, prepregnancy body mass index), results showed a small effect of pandemic exposure on shorter GA at birth, but no effect on birthweight adjusted for GA. Women who were pregnant during the pandemic reported higher levels of prenatal stress and depressive symptoms, but neither mediated the association between pandemic exposure and GA. Sedentary behavior and emotional support were each associated with prenatal stress and depressive symptoms in opposite directions, but no moderation effects were revealed. CONCLUSIONS: There was no strong evidence for an association between pandemic exposure and adverse birth outcomes. Furthermore, results highlight the importance of reducing maternal sedentary behavior and encouraging emotional support for optimizing maternal health regardless of pandemic conditions.

Depression screening may not capture significant sources of prenatal stress for Black women.

Exposure to stress during pregnancy, including depression, has a significant impact on maternal health. Black women experience varied stressors that impact pregnancy outcomes. Although the move to engage in universal screening of women for depression is a positive step toward improving women's health, it has been deployed without a comprehensive examination of its utility for capturing exposure to other stressors with known associations with perinatal and neonatal health problems for Black women such as discrimination stress. In the present study, we examine the overlap between several sources of stress and a positive screen on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) in Black pregnant women. Data were gathered from a study examining the effects of stress on prenatal health (N = 168). Discrimination stress, structural and systemic racism stress, perceived stress, and partner abuse were measured using standardized questionnaires during pregnancy. Using a score of ≥ 13 to indicate probable depression the sensitivity of the EPDS to identify women who experienced high levels of discrimination stress (41.7%), structural and systemic racism (39.5%), perceived stress (63.4%), and partner abuse (45.2%) was suboptimal. Lowering the threshold for a positive screen on the EPDS to a score of 10 improved sensitivity but did not solve the problem of under-identification of women whose health is at risk. The focus on depression screening for pregnant women should be re-considered. A screening toolkit that more rigorously and broadly assesses risk and need for support and intervention is needed to improve perinatal health outcomes for Black women.

Adolescent Mothers' Psychological Wellbeing during Pregnancy and Infant Emotional Health.

OBJECTIVE: Although many studies have identified risk factors for adolescent pregnancy, much less is known about factors that support pregnant adolescents' psychological wellbeing and offspring outcomes. This study drew on strength-based frameworks to investigate family and neighborhood factors linked to social connectedness that predict psychological wellbeing during adolescent pregnancy and offspring outcomes. METHOD: Participants included 135 adolescent mothers (ages 14-21; 90% Black American) assessed annually since childhood as part of a longitudinal study. During preadolescence (ages 11-13), data on contextual stressors and neighborhood support were gathered from participants' caregivers; participants also rated their perceived trust/attachment with caregivers before and during pregnancy. To assess changes in psychological wellbeing, adolescents reported positive and depressed mood before and during pregnancy. A path analysis model tested the prospective associations between family and neighborhood factors, psychological wellbeing during pregnancy, and offspring outcomes (birth outcomes; observed infant positive/negative emotions at age 3-months). RESULTS: Positive mood decreased from pre-pregnancy to pregnancy, whereas depressed mood remained stable. Adjusting for pre-pregnancy mood, perceived caregiver trust/attachment during pregnancy was associated with prenatal positive mood. Prenatal positive mood, in turn, reduced risk of preterm birth and indirectly predicted positive infant emotions via birth outcomes. Neighborhood support in preadolescence predicted lower prenatal depressed mood, but depressed mood did not predict infant outcomes beyond positive mood. Contextual life stress was not associated with prenatal mood after adjusting for family and neighborhood support. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight changes in positive-valence emotions during adolescent pregnancy that may have unique associations with birth outcomes and offspring emotions.

Social Support Coping for African American Adolescents: Effect of a Culturally Grounded Randomized Controlled Trial Intervention.

The effect of the Adapted-Coping with Stress (A-CWS) intervention on social support coping was examined, using a randomized controlled trial design. The participants were 410 ninth-grade students (ages 14 to 16 years and mostly African American) living in low-resourced neighborhoods. Participants were randomly assigned 1:1 to either the A-CWS intervention or a standard care control condition. All participants were assessed at their schools before implementation of the intervention, at intervention completion, and again at 6- and 12-month post-intervention. Engagement in social support coping was examined in both intention-to-treat and treatment-as-received samples (i.e., intervention participants who attended at least 12 A-CWS treatment sessions and participants in the standard care control condition), using latent growth models. In intention-to-treat analyses, no significant treatment effects were identified. In treatment-as-received analyses, results revealed a significant association between social support coping and treatment condition; levels of social support coping decreased over time in the control condition, but they remained relatively stable in the treatment condition. The results indicate adequate intervention adherence and efficacy of the A-CWS to sustain social support coping within a sample of youth at high risk for stress exposure and associated disorders.Clinical Trial Registration: clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT0395445.

Developmental Models of Depression, Externalizing Problems, and Self-regulatory Processes: Integrated Data Analysis Across Four Longitudinal Studies of Youth.

Integrative data analysis (IDA) was used to derive developmental models of depression, externalizing problems, and self-regulatory processes in three prevention trials of the Family Check-Up and one longitudinal, community-based study of girls over a 10-year span covering early to late adolescence (N = 4,773; 74.9% female, 41.7% white). We used moderated nonlinear factor analysis to create harmonized scores based on all available items for a given participant in the pooled dataset while accounting for potential differences in both the latent factor and the individual items as a function of observed covariates. We also conducted latent growth model analyses to examine developmental trajectories of risk. Results indicated a bidirectional relationship between depression and externalizing problems, with greater baseline externalizing problems and depression predicting growth in inhibitory control difficulties. Furthermore, initial level of inhibitory control difficulties was associated with growth in depression. We did not, however, find a relationship between early inhibitory control difficulties and growth in externalizing problems. This work illustrates the utility of IDA techniques to harmonize data across multiple studies to identify risk factors for the development of depression and externalizing problems that can be targeted by prevention efforts.

Longitudinal patterns and predictors of suicidal ideation in African American adolescents.

Suicide rates among African American adolescents have increased dramatically. Suicidal ideation is associated with both suicide attempts and completions, thus understanding ideation patterns and predictors in African American adolescents is critical to informing prevention efforts. This study recruited 160 African American ninth grade students. Participants were those students randomized to the control condition of a randomized controlled preventive intervention. Of the 160 participants, 99 completed all assessment points and were included in latent transition analyses. We assessed participants four times: baseline then again at 6-, 12-, and 18-month postbaseline. Constructs of interest for this study included suicidal ideation, depression, hopelessness, and community violence exposure. A 2-class model (i.e., low ideation [LI] and high ideation [HI]) characterized ideation at each time point. A total of 86%-90% of participants were in the LI class in any given time point and 27.3% of participants were in the HI class at least once. Participants in the LI class tended to stay in that class, whereas those in the HI class often transitioned to the LI group. Depression and hopelessness, but not exposure to community violence, predicted HI class membership. Findings suggest that (a) most African American adolescents may experience suicide ideation at some point in time, (b) a concerning proportion of African American adolescents may experience high ideation, (c) high ideation is often time-limited, and (d) depression and hopelessness predict high ideation.

Psychological Well-being across the Perinatal Period: Life Satisfaction and Flourishing in a Longitudinal Study of Black and White American Women.

Psychological well-being (life satisfaction and flourishing) during the perinatal period has implications for both maternal and child health. However, few studies have investigated the extent to which psychological well-being changes from preconception to postpartum periods, particularly among diverse samples of women. Using prospectively collected data from an ongoing longitudinal study, we investigated changes in two dimensions of psychological well-being from preconception to postpartum among 173 Black and White American women. Results showed that changes in life satisfaction (i.e., global quality of life) and flourishing (e.g., self-acceptance, sense of purpose) over the perinatal period were moderated by race. For life satisfaction, White women reported an increase from preconception to pregnancy with increased life satisfaction levels remaining stable from pregnancy to postpartum. However, Black women reported no changes in life satisfaction across these timepoints. In contrast, both Black and White women reported an increase in flourishing levels across the perinatal period, although the timing of these changes differed. Findings highlight a need for greater clinical and empirical attention to the way in which psychological well-being changes during the perinatal period to optimize health and inform strengths-based intervention targets.

Suicide in African American Adolescents: Understanding Risk by Studying Resilience.

Historically, suicide rates for African American adolescents have been low, relative to rates for youth of other racial-ethnic backgrounds. Since 2001, however, suicide rates among African American adolescents have escalated: Suicide is now the third leading cause of death for African American adolescents. This disturbing trend warrants focused research on suicide etiology and manifestation in African American adolescents, along with culturally sensitive and effective prevention efforts. First, we revisit leading suicide theories and their relevance for African American adolescents. Next, we discuss health promotive and protective factors within the context of African American youth development. We also critique the current status of suicide risk assessment and prevention for African American adolescents. Then, we present a heuristic model of suicide risk and resilience for African American adolescents that considers their development within a hegemonic society. Finally, we recommend future directions for African American adolescent suicidology.

A Longitudinal Study of Differences in Perceived Parenting Practices Between Sexual Minority and Heterosexual Girls.

Parental warmth and control are consistent and persistent correlates of adolescent health and may be particularly important for sexual minority girls, who experience higher rates of adverse health outcomes than their heterosexual peers. Differences in perceptions of parental trust, positivity, supervision, and discipline from ages 11-17 years were examined between sexual minority and heterosexual girls using data from the Pittsburgh Girls Study, a longitudinal, community-based study. Results indicated that sexual minority girls reported lower levels of parental trust and positivity compared to heterosexual girls beginning in mid-adolescence; differences in supervision were present at age 11 years and persisted over time. Further investigation of this perceived difference is warranted given the importance of familial support for health promotion.

Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Activity in Childhood Predicts Emotional Memory Effects and Related Neural Circuitry in Adolescent Girls.

Negative emotional experiences can be more difficult to forget than neutral ones, a phenomenon termed the "emotional memory effect." Individual differences in the strength of the emotional memory effect are associated with emotional health. Thus, understanding the neurobiological underpinnings of the emotional memory effect has important implications, especially for individuals at risk for emotional health problems. Although the neural basis of emotional memory effects has been relatively well defined, less is known about how hormonal factors that can modulate emotional memory, such as glucocorticoids, relate to that neural basis. Importantly, probing the role of glucocorticoids in the stress- and emotion-sensitive period of late childhood to adolescence could provide actionable points of intervention. We addressed this gap by testing whether hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activity during a parent-child conflict task at 11 years of age predicted emotional memory and its primary neural circuitry (i.e., amygdala-hippocampus functional connectivity) at 16 years of age in a longitudinal study of 147 girls (104 with complete data). Results showed that lower HPA axis activity predicted stronger emotional memory effects, r(124) = -.236, p < .01, and higher emotional memory-related functional connectivity between the right hippocampus and the right amygdala, ß = -.385, p < .001. These findings suggest that late childhood HPA axis activity may modulate the neural circuitry of emotional memory effects in adolescence, which may confer a potential risk trajectory for emotional health among girls.

The longitudinal stability of fMRI activation during reward processing in adolescents and young adults.

BACKGROUND: The use of functional neuroimaging has been an extremely fruitful avenue for investigating the neural basis of human reward function. This approach has included identification of potential neurobiological mechanisms of psychiatric disease and examination of environmental, experiential, and biological factors that may contribute to disease risk via effects on the reward system. However, a central and largely unexamined assumption of much of this research is that neural reward function is an individual difference characteristic that is relatively stable and trait-like over time. METHODS: In two independent samples of adolescents and young adults studied longitudinally (Ns = 145 & 139, 100% female and 100% male, ages 15-21 and 20-22, 2-4 scans and 2 scans respectively), we tested within-person stability of reward-task BOLD activation, with a median of 1 and 2 years between scans. We examined multiple commonly used contrasts of active states and baseline in both the anticipation and feedback phases of a card-guessing reward task. We examined the effects of cortical parcellation resolution, contrast, network (reward regions and resting-state networks), region-size, and activation strength and variability on the stability of reward-related activation. RESULTS: In both samples, contrasts of an active state relative to a baseline were more stable (ICC: intra-class correlation; e.g., Win>Baseline; mean ICC = 0.13 - 0.33) than contrasts of two active states (e.g., Win>Loss; mean ICC = 0.048 - 0.05). Additionally, activation in reward regions was less stable than in many non-task networks (e.g., dorsal attention), and activation in regions with greater between-subject variability showed higher stability in both samples. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that some contrasts from functional neuroimaging activation during a card guessing reward task have partially trait-like properties in adolescent and young adult samples over 1-2 years. Notably, results suggest that contrasts intended to map cognitive function and show robust group-level effects (i.e. Win > Loss) may be less effective in studies of individual differences and disease risk. The robustness of group-level activation should be weighed against other factors when selecting regions of interest in individual difference fMRI studies.

Validity of the Trier Social Stress Test in studying discrimination stress.

To test the validity of a modified Trier Social Stress Test (TSST) for studying stress reactivity in sexual minority women. Two hundred seventy-four female participants (66.4% Black American), half of whom identified as lesbian/gay or bisexual and half as heterosexual, completed the TSST with instructions to describe an experience of discrimination. Cortisol levels and negative emotion scores increased, and heart rate variability decreased in response to the TSST, and the magnitude of these responses varied as a function of sexual orientation and race. Women who discussed sexual orientation as a source of discrimination had greater increases in cortisol and negative mood following the TSST. The modified instructions did not compromise the validity of the TSST. Prompting participants to discuss specific sources of discrimination may be a useful adaptation of the TSST in studying minority stress reactivity. SUMMARY The goal of the present study was to adapt a widely used measure of stress reactivity to study the impact of experiences with discrimination on biological systems involved in regulating the stress response. The modification included asking women to discuss a time when they had been treated unfairly and to describe how they responded to that experience. The magnitude of response to the task varied as a function of sexual orientation and race, and the topics discussed, demonstrating usefulness of the modification for studying the impact of discrimination stress of physical health.

Pain, eating behavior, and weight outcomes in adolescent girls.

OBJECTIVE: In adults, pain is prospectively associated with overweight/obesity and concurrently associated with dysregulated eating, with evidence for stronger associations in women than men. This study aimed to evaluate whether similar associations among pain response, BMI, and loss of control (LOC) eating are also evident in adolescent girls. METHOD: Girls (n = 202) completed the cold pressor test (CPT) at age 10, and BMI and LOC eating were assessed annually from ages 10-16 years. Generalized linear models were used to test associations between pain tolerance (total immersion time) and threshold (latency to highest pain rating), and changes in BMI and LOC eating. RESULTS: Lower pain tolerance and threshold at age 10 were associated with increases in LOC eating from age 10 to 16 (tolerance: B < -.01, SE < .01, p = .005; threshold: B = -.03, SE = .01, p = .0118). No significant associations were observed between pain tolerance/threshold and increasing BMI. DISCUSSION: Pain responsivity in childhood is associated with increases in dysregulated eating from childhood to adolescence. These findings provide support for the early development of an interface between pain and eating behaviors.

Phenotyping stress exposures related to perinatal health disparities.

Black American women living in low-resource environments are exposed to multiple stressors and are at high risk for perinatal complications. Stress exposure likely impacts pregnancy and birth complications via alterations in health systems that are engaged in regulating the stress response. Stressors may vary in terms of magnitude and pattern of effect on such health systems. In the present study, we test associations between three types of stress exposure: perceived stress, negative life events, and discrimination stress on neuroendocrine and cardiac response to a controlled laboratory stressor during the first trimester of pregnancy. In all, 100 pregnant Black women with Medicaid insurance completed a laboratory assessment during which salivary cortisol and heart rate variability (HRV) were used to measure stress response to the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Results revealed that only discrimination stress was significantly associated with cortisol and HRV in response to the TSST. High levels of discrimination stress were associated with lower levels of cortisol reactivity and higher levels of HRV across the visit. These results highlight the differential impact of domains of stress exposure on stress regulation during pregnancy and provide further evidence of the impact of discrimination stress on Black American women's health.

Direct replication of task-dependent neural activation patterns during sadness introspection in two independent adolescent samples.

Functional neuroimaging results need to replicate to inform sound models of human social cognition and its neural correlates. Introspection, the capacity to reflect on one's thoughts and feelings, is one process required for normative social cognition and emotional functioning. Engaging in introspection draws on a network of brain regions including medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), posterior cingulate cortex (PCC), middle temporal gyri (MTG), and temporoparietal junction (TPJ). Maturation of these regions during adolescence mirrors the behavioral advances seen in adolescent social cognition, but the neural correlates of introspection in adolescence need to replicate to confirm their generalizability and role as a possible mechanism. The current study investigated whether reflecting upon one's own feelings of sadness would activate and replicate similar brain regions in two independent samples of adolescents. Participants included 156 adolescents (50% female) from the California Families Project and 119 adolescent girls from the Pittsburgh Girls Study of Emotion. All participants completed the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and underwent a functional magnetic resonance imaging scan while completing the same facial emotion-processing task at age 16-17 years. Both samples showed similar whole-brain activation patterns when engaged in sadness introspection and when judging a nonemotional facial feature. Whole-brain activation was unrelated to ERQ scores in both samples. Neural responsivity to task manipulations replicated in regions recruited for socio-emotional (mPFC, PCC, MTG, TPJ) and attention (dorsolateral PFC, precentral gyri, superior occipital gyrus, superior parietal lobule) processing. These findings demonstrate robust replication of neural engagement during sadness introspection in two independent adolescent samples.

Adolescent childbirth, miscarriage, and abortion: associations with changes in alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use.

BACKGROUND: Adolescent girls who become pregnant demonstrate greater risk for substance use than same-aged peers. However, it remains unclear how risk relates to normative changes in adolescence. Few studies have examined adolescent substance use changes before, during, and after pregnancy and considered how pregnancy outcomes (childbirth, miscarriage, abortion) differentially influence substance use changes. The present study examined associations between different adolescent pregnancy outcomes and within-person changes in substance use from prepregnancy to postpregnancy. METHODS: Participants included 2,450 girls (52% Black) oversampled from low-income urban neighborhoods in Pittsburgh, PA. Participants self-reported pregnancy outcomes and substance use frequency (alcohol, cigarette, marijuana) annually from ages 11-20. Fixed effects regressions focused on first births, first miscarriages, and first abortions occurring from ages 12-19 to test the associations between pregnancy outcomes and within-individual changes in substance use from prepregnancy to postpregnancy. By design, models controlled for all potential time-stable confounds, and models included age and subsequent pregnancies as time-varying covariates. RESULTS: Consistent with prior studies, girls who became pregnant (20%) reported greater early risk for substance use problems than never-pregnant adolescents, including earlier age of onset and more regular marijuana and cigarette use. Childbirth predicted a 26%-51% within-individual reduction in alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette use that remained significantly lower than prepregnancy levels after childbirth. Alcohol and marijuana use decreased (32%-47%) after miscarriage. Abortion was not associated with long-term changes in substance use; however, marijuana and cigarette use gradually increased (44%-46%) in the years leading up to the year of and after abortion, respectively, before returning to prepregnancy levels. CONCLUSIONS: Findings highlight important differences in adolescent substance use patterns based on pregnancy outcome. For pregnant adolescents with heightened pre-existing risk for substance use, pregnancy may be a window of opportunity for substance use screening and behavioral intervention.

Girls' brain structural connectivity in late adolescence relates to history of depression symptoms.

BACKGROUND: Girls' depressive symptoms typically increase in adolescence, with individual differences in course and severity being key risk factors for impaired emotional functioning in young adulthood. Given the continued brain white matter (WM) maturation that occurs in adolescence, the present study tested whether structural connectivity patterns in late adolescence are associated with variation in the course of depression symptom severity throughout adolescence. METHOD: Participants were girls (N = 115) enrolled in a multiyear prospective cohort study of risk for depression. Initial depression severity (intercept) at age 10 and change in severity (linear slope) across ages 10-19 were examined in relation to WM tractography collected at age 19. Network-based statistic analyses were used to identify clusters showing variation in structural connectivity in association with depressive symptom intercept, slope, and their interaction. RESULTS: Higher initial depressive severity and steeper positive slope (separately) were associated with greater structural connectivity between temporal, subcortical socioaffective, and occipital regions. Intercept showed more connectivity associations than slope. The interaction effect indicated that higher initial symptom severity and a steeper negative slope (i.e., alleviating symptoms) were related to greater connectivity between cognitive control regions. Moderately severe symptoms that worsened over time were followed by greater connectivity between self-referential and cognitive regions (e.g., posterior cingulate and frontal gyrus). CONCLUSIONS: Higher depressive symptom severity in early adolescence and increasing symptom severity over time may forecast structural connectivity differences in late adolescence, particularly in pathways involving cognitive and emotion-processing regions. Understanding how clinical course relates to neurobiological correlates may inform new treatment approaches to adolescent depression.

Alcohol Use Trajectories Before and After Pregnancy Among Adolescent and Young Adult Mothers.

BACKGROUND: Moderate to heavy alcohol use during pregnancy (≥3 drinks/occasion) is linked to a range of adverse offspring outcomes. Prior studies suggest that adolescent and young adult mothers may be particularly vulnerable to these risky drinking behaviors during and after pregnancy. This study used latent class growth analysis (LCGA) to examine changes in risky drinking from prepregnancy to postpregnancy and identified prepregnancy predictors representing cognitive and social factors to inform prevention. METHODS: Participants included 432 adolescent and young adult mothers (aged 13 to 24; 78% Black) assessed annually since childhood in the Pittsburgh Girls Study. Participants prospectively reported frequency of risky drinking (≥3 drinks/occasion) in the year of pregnancy and 2 years before and after pregnancy, as well as social-cognitive risk factors for drinking (alcohol expectancies, drinking motives, caregiver, and peer alcohol use). RESULTS: Approximately 11% of young mothers in this community-based sample engaged in risky drinking at least once a month during the year of pregnancy, with greater frequency observed for young adult (vs. adolescent) mothers. LCGA revealed 4 risky drinking trajectories across the perinatal period, including 3 relatively stable trajectories (low, moderate, and high frequency) and 1 distinct trajectory ("postpartum initiators") characterized by increased risky drinking post-childbirth. Peer alcohol use during and after pregnancy distinguished higher risk from lower risk trajectories, controlling for age, race, and age of drinking onset. Exposure to caregiver alcohol use and prepregnancy coping motives for drinking also elevated risk, but only for mothers who became pregnant in early adulthood (vs. adolescence). CONCLUSIONS: Adolescent and young adult mothers show heterogeneous risky drinking trajectories from prepregnancy to postpregnancy. Pregnant women in the transitional age of early adulthood who report exposure to caregiver alcohol use, more friends who drink, and coping motives for drinking may have elevated risk for moderate-heavy drinking during the perinatal period and may benefit from targeted intervention.