Taryn Lambert , Nikki Stephenson , Janice Skiffington , Donna Slater , Lara M. Leijser , Amy Metcalfe
{"title":"Impact of couple vs. individual participation in pregnancy research: A comparative analysis of participant characteristics and study retention","authors":"Taryn Lambert , Nikki Stephenson , Janice Skiffington , Donna Slater , Lara M. Leijser , Amy Metcalfe","doi":"10.1016/j.annepidem.2025.10.013","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Purpose</h3><div>Attrition of participants over time poses a challenge in longitudinal research. This study aimed to explore how partner participation influenced maternal retention.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Using data from the P3 Cohort (a longitudinal pregnancy cohort), study retention was assessed at each stage of data collection up to 1 year postpartum. Participants were grouped according to their partner's level of participation in the study (participants who did not consent to the study team contacting their partners, participants whose partners were contacted but did not consent to participate, and participants whose partners actively participated). Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the association between partner participation and participant attrition.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Of 2194 eligible participants, 38.9 % did not provide consent for the study team to contact their partner, and 42.1 % of partners that were contacted agreed to participate in the cohort. Retention rates in the cohort were high (97.5 % at 1 year postpartum) but varied by partner participation. Partner participation was associated with a significantly reduced hazard of attrition (HR=0.38, 95 % CI:0.15–0.92).</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Active partner participation significantly enhances maternal participant retention. Inclusion of partners in pregnancy research may help reduce attrition and gain a more comprehensive understanding of family dynamics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":50767,"journal":{"name":"Annals of Epidemiology","volume":"111 ","pages":"Pages 163-167"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0000,"publicationDate":"2025-10-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Annals of Epidemiology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1047279725003102","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PUBLIC, ENVIRONMENTAL & OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Purpose
Attrition of participants over time poses a challenge in longitudinal research. This study aimed to explore how partner participation influenced maternal retention.
Methods
Using data from the P3 Cohort (a longitudinal pregnancy cohort), study retention was assessed at each stage of data collection up to 1 year postpartum. Participants were grouped according to their partner's level of participation in the study (participants who did not consent to the study team contacting their partners, participants whose partners were contacted but did not consent to participate, and participants whose partners actively participated). Cox proportional hazards models were used to evaluate the association between partner participation and participant attrition.
Results
Of 2194 eligible participants, 38.9 % did not provide consent for the study team to contact their partner, and 42.1 % of partners that were contacted agreed to participate in the cohort. Retention rates in the cohort were high (97.5 % at 1 year postpartum) but varied by partner participation. Partner participation was associated with a significantly reduced hazard of attrition (HR=0.38, 95 % CI:0.15–0.92).
Conclusions
Active partner participation significantly enhances maternal participant retention. Inclusion of partners in pregnancy research may help reduce attrition and gain a more comprehensive understanding of family dynamics.
期刊介绍:
The journal emphasizes the application of epidemiologic methods to issues that affect the distribution and determinants of human illness in diverse contexts. Its primary focus is on chronic and acute conditions of diverse etiologies and of major importance to clinical medicine, public health, and health care delivery.