Effectiveness of acupuncture and related therapies for post-stroke insomnia: A systematic review and Bayesian network analysis.

Prenatal attachment refers to the emotional bond that develops between expectant parents and the fetus during pregnancy, manifested through emotional investment, interactive behaviors, and psychological representation of the unborn child. The concept is rooted in Bowlby’s attachment theory, which emphasizes the importance of early emotional bonds in human development. Early observations of parental grief following perinatal loss further highlighted the psychological significance of the parent-fetus relationship. Cranley subsequently operationalized the emotional connection between a pregnant woman and her fetus as maternal-fetal attachment and developed the Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale, providing one of the earliest standardized tools for empirical assessment. The concept was later extended to fathers through the development of the Paternal-Fetal Attachment Scale, reflecting increasing recognition of paternal involvement during pregnancy. Subsequent critical evaluations and psychometric refinements of attachment instruments contributed to the development of more multidimensional measures, such as the Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale and the Prenatal Attachment Assessment Scale. Prenatal attachment has important implications for perinatal mental health, pregnancy-related behaviors, and early family relationships. Previous studies have shown that stronger prenatal attachment is associated with better maternal psychological adaptation, healthier pregnancy behaviors, and more positive postnatal mother-infant interactions. Conversely, lower levels of maternal-fetal attachment have been linked to anxiety, depression, adverse neonatal outcomes, and subsequent developmental challenges in infants.. In addition, paternal-fetal attachment has received growing attention because fathers’ emotional involvement during pregnancy may influence postnatal caregiving behaviors and early family functioning. These findings suggest that prenatal attachment is not only a psychological construct but also a clinically and socially relevant topic within perinatal health and family-centered care. Previous narrative reviews, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses have contributed substantially to this field by summarizing the conceptual development of maternal-fetal attachment, its psychosocial predictors, measurement issues, maternal mental health correlates, and intervention strategies related to prenatal attachment. For example, previous syntheses have reviewed the development and influencing factors of maternal-fetal attachment, quantitatively evaluated its predictors, examined measurement instruments for assessing the mother-fetus relationship, summarized associations between maternal well-being and maternal-fetal attachment, and evaluated the effectiveness of psychoeducational interventions for improving prenatal attachment and related psychological outcomes. However, these studies were primarily designed to answer specific clinical or psychological questions rather than to map the overall knowledge structure and temporal development of the field. Consequently, they provide limited information about collaboration networks among countries, institutions, and authors; the co-cited intellectual base; longitudinal shifts in research hotspots; and emerging thematic frontiers. Therefore, a scientometric analysis is needed to complement traditional evidence syntheses by systematically visualizing the collaborative networks, knowledge foundations, and thematic evolution of prenatal attachment research.