Parental mental health - not medication - drives autism correlation, new study finds

A review of 37 studies involving more than 25 million pregnancies found that children exposed to antidepressants during pregnancy were more likely to be diagnosed with autism or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). After adjusting for confounding factors such as family history of neurodevelopmental disorders and mothers’ preexisting mental health conditions, the association disappeared. Children were more likely to receive autism or ADHD diagnoses when mothers had a history of depression, regardless of medication use. Children were also more likely to be diagnosed with autism and ADHD when fathers took antidepressants during gestation, even if mothers did not, suggesting a genetic link rather than a medication effect. Findings align with clinical guidance supporting antidepressant treatment when clinically indicated.

"In an analysis of 37 separate studies covering more than 25 million pregnancies, a research team from the University of Hong Kong found that children born to women who took antidepressants while pregnant were indeed more likely to later be diagnosed with autism or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). But when the researchers took into account confounding factors such as a family history of neurodevelopmental disorders or mothers' preexisting mental health conditions, the correlation disappeared."

"The data showed that children born to women with a history of depression were more likely to be diagnosed with autism or ADHD, regardless of whether their mother took psychiatric medication. Children were also more likely to be diagnosed with autism and ADHD if their fathers took antidepressants during their gestation, even if their mothers did not - an association that suggests a genetic link, not a pharmacological one."

""Our findings are consistent with current clinical guidelines, which generally support continuing antidepressant treatment during pregnancy when it is clinically indicated," said Dr. Wing-Chung Chang, a psychiatry professor at the University of Hong Kong and the paper's senior author. "Our findings do not provide strong evidence that prenatal antidepressant exposure causes neurodevelopmental disorders.""

Read at Los Angeles Times