A new study of more than 145,000 women and their kids across the United States followed for up to 14 years showed that expectant moms taking many common antidepressants no longer need to worry that the medication may harm the future behavioral or cognitive neurodevelopment of their child.
Study author Elizabeth Suarez said previous studies on this particular topic yielded conflicting results. She added that due to their large population size and careful study design, they believe that their research offers clarity that could help providers and patients make treatment decisions during their pregnancy.
The study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine on Monday, October 3, showed that antidepressant use during pregnancy was not associated with behavioral disorders, developmental speech, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), learning and coordination disorders, language, intellectual disabilities, or autism.
Suarez's study is indeed an important paper
Suarez said that the study results are reassuring to expectant parents, who mainly have concerns about neurodevelopment harm to their kids when taking medication concerning their mental health issues.
Carmine Pariante, who works as a professor of biological psychiatry at King's College London, said that Suarez's work is indeed an important paper. One of the main concerns for health professionals and women is the use of antidepressants during pregnancy.
Expectant moms suddenly decide to stop their medications as soon as they discover they are pregnant. Pariante said that pregnant women should be told instead that the risk during pregnancy is not as high as previously thought when taking these medications.
Dr. Tiffany Moore Simas of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists told CNN that she is grateful for this study.
Stop shaming, as healthy babies need healthy moms
Moore Simas said that one in five perinatal individuals would experience a mental health condition, and they must stop shaming them for doing what is needed to care for themselves. She added that healthy babies need healthy mothers.
Numerous studies conducted over the decades have found associations between antidepressant use during pregnancy and developmental concerns in kids, predominately ADHD and autism. Newer research, however, has called the quality of that prior research into question.
Many older studies regarding this matter were observational and often failed to control for contributing factors such as environmental toxins, inflammation, maternal stress, obesity, and other health conditions.
Suarez said they did not consider other potential adverse outcomes in their study. She added that their neurodevelopmental disorders' results should also be weighed with the risk of other outcomes. Suarez cited the slight potential increase in the risk of preterm birth for women taking medication and the benefits of their treatment.
