Given the number of younger women using atypical antipsychotic medications, we need more accurate data regarding the reproductive safety of these medications. To better understand the link between antipsychotic medication and medical conditions associated with [...]
Prenatal cocaine exposure or PCE occurs when a child is exposed in utero to cocaine taken by the pregnant mother. We know that cocaine exposure during pregnancy can negatively affect the pregnancy; women who use [...]
Second-generation or “atypical” antipsychotics, such as olanzapine (Zyprexa), aripiprazole (Abilify), and risperidone (Risperdal), are used far more frequently than are the first-generation or “typical” antipsychotics, such as haloperidol (Haldol). This is largely because the newer [...]
Many studies have examined the association between parental age and psychiatric illness in the children, including autism and schizophrenia. In a recent case-control study from Finland, the authors identified 10,409 individuals with ADHD born between 1991 and 2005 from nationwide population-based registers. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between parental age and ADHD in the offspring, adjusting for potential confounding factors including parental psychiatric history, maternal socioeconomic status, marital status, maternal smoking during pregnancy, number of previous births, and birth weight.
While the human brain continues develop throughout the first twenty or so years of life, the most vulnerable periods of brain development occur during pregnancy and the first 2 to 3 years of the child’s [...]
Many studies have assessed the risk of depression in the mothers of infants, but fewer studies have focused on the risk of depression in the mothers with older children.
We write often here about the negative effects of postpartum depression on the child. Most of the studies thus far have focused on behavior and cognitive development; a recent study from researchers at JohnsHopkinsUniversity suggests that being exposed to maternal depression during the first year of life may negatively affect the physical development of the child as well.
Since their introduction in the 1990s, atypical (second-generation) antipsychotics have replaced typical (first generation) antipsychotics as the first-line treatment for schizophrenia and related psychotic disorders. These drugs are widely used by reproductive age women across many other disease states including bipolar disorder, major depression and anxiety disorders as either primary or adjunctive treatments.
Atypical antipsychotic medications are commonly used for the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Despite the increasing use of these medications in women of child-bearing age, there is still relatively little data regarding the reproductive safety and long-term neurodevelopmental effects of these medications. A recent study assessed the development of 76 infants with fetal exposure to atypical antipsychotics.
While much attention has focused on the impact of maternal psychiatric illness on the well-being of the child, less is known about the impact of psychiatric illness in the father. A large population-based study from Norway examines the association between symptoms of psychological distress in expectant fathers and socioemotional and behavioral outcomes in their children at 36 months of age.
