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Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes
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Author Spotlight: Studying the Impact of Maternal Dietary Deficiencies on Long-Term Offspring Health Outcomes

Published on: June 28, 2024

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Preventing intellectual disability during pregnancy: what are the potentially high yield targets?

Yinding Wang, Suzanne McDermott, Joshua R Mann

    Journal of Perinatal Medicine
    |September 10, 2015
    PubMed

    Insights

    Maternal depression and bipolar disorder are linked to a higher risk of intellectual disability (ID) in children. These conditions account for a significant portion of the population-attributable risk for ID.

    Area of Science:

    • Neuroscience
    • Pediatrics
    • Psychiatry

    Background:

    • Intellectual disability (ID) affects approximately 1-3% of the population.
    • Identifying risk factors for unknown-cause ID is crucial for early intervention and prevention strategies.
    • Maternal mental health conditions are increasingly recognized as potential contributors to child developmental outcomes.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To identify maternal risk factors associated with intellectual disability (ID) in children.
    • To estimate the population-attributable risk (PAR) for identified maternal risk factors contributing to ID.
    • To investigate the association between maternal major depression and bipolar disorder and the risk of ID in offspring.

    Main Methods:

    • Retrospective cohort study utilizing South Carolina Medicaid billing records, birth certificates, and administrative data (2004-2010).
    • Inclusion of 123,922 maternal-child pairs.
    • Logistic generalized estimating equations (GEE) regression models were employed to assess the association between maternal risk factors and child ID, with and without controlling for birth weight.

    Main Results:

    • The prevalence of ID among the studied children was 3.85%.
    • Maternal major depression was significantly associated with increased odds of ID in children (males OR 1.34, females OR 1.59).
    • Maternal bipolar disorder was also significantly associated with increased odds of ID in children (males OR 1.95, females OR 1.63).
    • Population-attributable risk estimates indicated that maternal depression accounted for 2.17-4.70% and bipolar disorder for 2.05-2.85% of ID cases.

    Conclusions:

    • Maternal major depression and bipolar disorder are significant risk factors associated with intellectual disability in children.
    • These maternal mental health conditions collectively contribute to approximately 2-5% of the population-attributable risk for ID.
    • Findings underscore the importance of addressing maternal mental health in the context of child neurodevelopmental outcomes.
    Abstract

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