Depressed mom, sick newborn

Official figures show that 85 percent of British women aged 16 to 49 have low folic acid levels.

Official figures show that 85 percent of British women aged 16 to 49 have low folic acid levels.

Published Jun 10, 2015

Share

London - Women who take antidepressants in pregnancy slightly raise the chance of their child developing a rare illness, research suggests.

Two in 1 000 babies are born with a circulation problem called PPHN – or persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn.

The condition, which occurs when the lungs do not adapt to breathing outside the womb, kills up to 40 percent. Many survivors are left permanently disabled.

A study of 3.7 million American women has found that expectant mothers who take antidepressants increase PPHN risk from 0.2 percent to 0.3 percent. This indicates that for every 1 000 women who take such drugs in the 90 days before birth, one will have a baby with PPHN who would not have otherwise developed it.

The research, by Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, was published in the JAMA medical journal.

Experts welcomed the findings, but some pointed out that the numbers involved were tiny.

Dr Patrick O’Brien, of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, said it was “the best evidence we currently have” on antidepressants and PPHN risk, but advised depressed pregnant women that the benefits of the drugs “outweigh the risks”.

Daily Mail

Related Topics: