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Pregnancy complications associated with childhood anxiety disorders

Dina R Hirshfeld-Becker1, Joseph Biederman, Stephen V Faraone

  • 1Pediatric Psychopharmacology Program, Massachusetts General Hospital, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA. dhirshfeld@partners.org

Depression and Anxiety
|May 7, 2004
PubMed

Insights

Perinatal complications, such as heavy bleeding or hypertension during pregnancy, independently increase the risk for childhood anxiety disorders. These prenatal stressors contribute to anxiety risk beyond parental psychopathology alone.

Area of Science:

  • Perinatal Psychiatry
  • Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
  • Developmental Psychology

Background:

  • Parental psychopathology is a known risk factor for childhood anxiety disorders.
  • The independent contribution of perinatal complications to this risk remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether perinatal complications predict childhood anxiety disorders independently of parental psychopathology.
  • To identify specific pregnancy and delivery complications associated with increased anxiety risk in children.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic assessment of pregnancy and delivery complications in children at high risk for anxiety disorders.
  • Psychopathology in children and parents was assessed using structured diagnostic interviews (K-SADS) and the DICA-P.
  • Comparison of offspring from families with varying parental mood and anxiety disorder diagnoses.

Main Results:

  • The number of pregnancy complications significantly predicted multiple childhood anxiety disorders, independent of parental diagnosis (odds ratio=1.6).
  • Specific complications like heavy bleeding, hypertension, and serious family problems were key predictors.
  • These associations remained significant even after accounting for child mood and disruptive behavior disorders.

Conclusions:

  • Prenatal stressors, including specific pregnancy complications, represent an independent risk factor for childhood anxiety disorders.
  • These findings highlight the importance of considering perinatal factors in understanding the etiology of childhood anxiety.
  • Interventions targeting prenatal risk factors may help mitigate the development of childhood anxiety disorders.

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