Early-Onset Preeclampsia Linked to Delayed Problem-Solving Development in Children: JAMA

Results Among 14 023 mother-child pairs (maternal mean [SD] age, 32.5 [4.8] years; 6754 [48.2%] female children), 1406 (10.0%) were exposed to HDP. Three patterns were identified in the 5 domains: normal, delay, and catch-up. Point estimates for delays in multiple domains of development were greater for any HDP, preeclampsia, and early-onset preeclampsia, but not all findings were statistically significant. Early-onset preeclampsia was associated with a significantly higher risk of delay pattern in problem solving domain (RR, 2.90; 95% CI, 1.43-5.89; adjusted P = .047), although the risks of delay pattern were not statistically significant in communication (RR, 1.94; 95% CI, 1.14-3.29; adjusted P = .15), gross motor (RR, 2.10; 95% CI, 1.26-3.51; adjusted P = .06), or fine motor (RR, 2.68; 95% CI, 1.26-5.71; adjusted P = .11) domains. In the term-born population, children exposed to preeclampsia and had an RR greater than 1 for the delay pattern in the problem solving domain (RR, 1.67; 95% CI, 1.92-2.74; adjusted P = .60), although this finding was not statistically significant after adjusting for multiple comparisons.

In this cohort study, fetal exposure to early-onset preeclampsia was associated with higher risk of a delayed child developmental pattern in the problem solving domain. The observations were modified by preterm birth. These findings suggest that children exposed to certain HDP subtypes during fetal life require developmental monitoring, especially if they were born preterm.

Reference:

Chen G, Ishikuro M, Ohseto H, et al. Child Developmental Patterns by Age 4 Years Across Subtypes of Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(11):e2545719. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.45719

Keywords:

Chen G, Ishikuro M, Ohseto H, Child, Developmental, Patterns, Age 4, Years, Across, Subtypes, Hypertensive, Disorders, Pregnancy, JAMA Netw Open