Exposure to Valproate in the Womb May Increase Risk of Autism, ADHD

Valproate, which is used to treat epilepsy, migraines, and bipolar disorder, has previously been linked to neural tube birth defects if taken during pregnancy. Anarticle appearing in theJanuary issue ofPsychiatric News reports new findings that children exposed to valproate in the womb had an elevated risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) compared with those who were not exposed to the medication in the womb.The research was conducted by a team at Indiana University along with colleagues at Sweden ’s Karolinska Institutet. The team used Swedish birth and medical registers to identify 14,614 children born between 1996 and 2011 to mothers with epilepsy. About 23% of the mothers used an anticonvulsant during the first trimester of pregnancy, with carbamazepine (9.7%), lamotrigine (6.8%), and v alproate (4.8%) being the three most common.After factoring in other variables that contribute to ASD or ADHD risk —including demographic characteristics, other medications used by the mothers, parental psychiatric history, and seizure severity—the investigators found that children who were exposed to valproate in the womb were 2.3 times as likely to be diagnosed with ASD and 1.74 times as likely to be diagn osed with ADHD as children who were not exposed to anticonvulsants. They also identified a small risk of ASD for carbamazepine exposure, but only in mothers who took this medication in combination with another anticonvulsant. T...
Source: Psychiatr News - Category: Psychiatry Tags: ADHD anticonvulsant ASD autism epilepsy Indiana University Karolinska Institutet Kelsey Wiggs pregnancy seizure valproate Veerle Bergink Source Type: research