Peripartum usage of antidepressants is not associated with higher risk of neurodevelopmental disruption to the children
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Reviewed by Nhi Le, B.A.
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Posted on October 17th, 2022
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Because the effect of antidepressants during pregnancy is unknown, many expecting mothers give up their therapy due to their concern over the potential impact on their children's neurodevelopment. Compounded with stress due to peri- and post- partum factors, the psychological health of these mothers are worsen, and this can directly affect their relationship with the neonates. A recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association had assessed the effect of peripartum antidepressant usage on the neurodevelopmental and psychological health outcomes of children.
The retrospective cohort study investigated children born from 145,702 mothers that had used antidepressants during the period of synaptogenesis (from the 19th week of gestation to delivery). As a group, the 5 most commonly used drugs are sertraline, fluoxetine, bupropion, citalopram, and escitalopram - belongs to 3 classes of antidepressants: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, and tricyclic antidepressants. To serve as a reference, comparison was made to children born from 3,032,745 pregnancies that were not exposed to antidepressant during and 90 days before the start of pregnancy. Children in the cohorts were followed from birth until 14 years of age or until the onset of disease. The study reported that usage of antidepressant during pregnancy does not increase the risk of:
The retrospective cohort study investigated children born from 145,702 mothers that had used antidepressants during the period of synaptogenesis (from the 19th week of gestation to delivery). As a group, the 5 most commonly used drugs are sertraline, fluoxetine, bupropion, citalopram, and escitalopram - belongs to 3 classes of antidepressants: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, and tricyclic antidepressants. To serve as a reference, comparison was made to children born from 3,032,745 pregnancies that were not exposed to antidepressant during and 90 days before the start of pregnancy. Children in the cohorts were followed from birth until 14 years of age or until the onset of disease. The study reported that usage of antidepressant during pregnancy does not increase the risk of:
- Autism spectrum disorder
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder
- Specific-learning disorder
- Developmental language/speech disorder
- Developmental coordination disorder
- Intellectual disability
- Behavioral disorder