New Results on Antidepressants in Pregnancy

A series of three recent studies into the side-effects of antidepressant use during pregnancy has found no clear effects on the baby but a possible risk of hemorrhage during childbirth. Depression is common in pregnancy and afterwards, with a rate of 11% to 20% in the United States. Antidepressants are being increasingly used, so a large body of research has examined the potential risks. The first study, led by Dr. Marte Handal of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, included details on 51,404 children. Among the mothers, 159 used selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during pregnancy. At three years old, the children in this group showed “a slight delay in the development of fine and gross motor skills,” but the study is limited by small the numbers. Dr. Handal, stated, “Our results show that treatment with SSRIs during longer time periods in pregnancy was weakly associated with a delayed motor development at age three. However, only a very small number of children had a severe delay. Even though we did take into account maternal symptoms of depression we still did not have complete information on the severity of the maternal depression in the different groups. “Effective treatment of depression during pregnancy is essential and these results should not discourage healthcare professionals from prescribing or continuing antidepressant treatment to those who need it.” In the second study, information from 49,000 women in Australia w...
Source: Psych Central - Category: Psychiatry Authors: Tags: Children and Teens Depression Disorders Family General Medications Parenting Postpartum Depression Psychology Women's Issues Antidepressants Child Development Childbirth delayed motor development Motherhood motor skills Obs Source Type: news