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Is maternal age a risk factor for mental retardation among children?
1Laboratory Practice Assessment Branch, Division of Laboratory Systems, Public Health Practice Program Office, Centers for Disease Control Prevention, Atlanta, GA 30341, USA.
Insights
Maternal age is not linked to isolated intellectual disability. However, older mothers (30+) face increased risks for codevelopmental intellectual disability in Black children, and white children due to Down syndrome.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Developmental Pediatrics
- Genetics
Background:
- Maternal age is a known factor in pregnancy outcomes.
- Previous studies have explored links between maternal age and child development.
- Understanding risks for intellectual disability is crucial for public health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between very young or advanced maternal age and intellectual disability in children.
- To differentiate between isolated intellectual disability and codevelopmental intellectual disability.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study involving 10-year-old children identified with intellectual disability (IQ ≤ 70) in metropolitan Atlanta.
- Cases were categorized into isolated retardation or codevelopmental retardation (with CNS developmental disabilities/birth defects).
- Controls were randomly selected from public school records; data sourced from birth certificates.
Main Results:
- Children of teenage mothers showed no increased risk for either type of intellectual disability.
- Children of mothers aged 30+ had no increased risk for isolated intellectual disability compared to mothers aged 20-29.
- A significant risk of codevelopmental intellectual disability was observed in Black children of mothers aged 30+, independent of Down syndrome.
- White children born to older mothers showed a modest increase in codevelopmental intellectual disability risk, primarily due to Down syndrome.
Conclusions:
- Very young maternal age is not associated with increased risk of intellectual disability.
- Advanced maternal age (>30) is linked to an elevated risk of codevelopmental intellectual disability, particularly in Black children and white children with Down syndrome.
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to determine whether older or very young maternal age at delivery is associated with mental retardation in children. Ten-year-old children with mental retardation (an intelligence quotient of 70 or less) were identified in 1985-1987 from multiple sources in the metropolitan Atlanta, Georgia, area. These children were subdivided into two case groups according to whether they had concomitant developmental disabilities or birth defects affecting the central nervous system (codevelopmental retardation) or did not have such disabilities (isolated retardation). Control children were randomly chosen from the regular education files of the public school systems in the study area. Data on sociodemographic variables were gathered from birth certificates. Children of teenaged mothers were not at increased risk for either form of retardation and children of mothers aged > or =30 years were not at increased risk for isolated retardation, in comparison with children of mothers aged 20-29 years. A markedly elevated risk of codevelopmental retardation was seen among black children of mothers aged > or =30 years that was not attributable to Down syndrome. A modest increase in risk for codevelopmental retardation was observed among white children born to older mothers, but it was entirely due to Down syndrome.