Maternal Stress During Pregnancy Linked to Epilepsy Risk in Children, finds study
Researchers have identified that even moderate, chronic psychological stress during pregnancy is associated with increased risk of early childhood epilepsy in offspring. A recent study was conducted by Yuto A. and colleagues published in PLoS One journal.
Maternal psychological distress during pregnancy has been related to several adverse developmental outcomes in the offspring. However, research into the association of maternal distress with epileptic development remains sparse. This study took advantage of the nationwide Japanese birth cohort dataset to investigate this relationship.
This was a retrospective analysis of data from 97,484 children whose mother had psychological distress assessed using the six-item Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6). It was administered at two different times during pregnancy:
• M-T1: between 12.3–18.9 weeks (median 15.1 weeks)
• M-T2: between 25.3–30.1 weeks (median 27.4 weeks)
Six groups were defined based on K6 scores ≤4 or ≥5 at both M-T1 and M-T2. The incidence of epilepsy among offspring was determined at ages 1, 2, and 3.
Epilepsy Diagnosis
• Age 1 year: 89 children (0.1%) diagnosed with epilepsy
• Age 2 years: 129 children (0.2%) diagnosed with epilepsy
• Age 3 years: 149 children (0.2%) diagnosed with epilepsy
Maternal K6 Scores:
• Continuous mild to moderate psychological distress (K6 ≥5) at both M-T1 and M-T2 was significantly associated with higher epilepsy diagnosis ratios.
Continuous moderate psychological distress in pregnancy has already been established as a risk factor for epilepsy in early childhood. Such findings pose a reminder of the need for targeted support strategies at the onset of pregnancy and underline the importance of environmental adjustments and interventions aimed at reducing stress.
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