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Association between maternal multimorbidity and neurodevelopment of offspring: a prospective birth cohort study from

Takanobu Akagi1, Yasuaki Saijo2, Eiji Yoshioka1

  • 1Department of Social Medicine, Asahikawa Medical University, Asahikawa, Japan.

BMJ Open
|August 3, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Pregnancy multimorbidity, defined as two or more health conditions, is linked to higher risks of neurodevelopmental delay in children. This finding highlights the importance of maternal health for child development outcomes.

Area of Science:

  • Reproductive Health
  • Pediatric Neurodevelopment
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Maternal health during pregnancy significantly influences offspring neurodevelopment.
  • Understanding the impact of pregnancy comorbidities on child development is crucial for public health.
  • Previous research has explored various factors affecting child neurodevelopment, but the specific role of maternal multimorbidity requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between multimorbidity during pregnancy and neurodevelopmental delay in offspring.
  • To quantify the risk of neurodevelopmental impairment in children born to mothers with single or multiple comorbidities.

Main Methods:

  • A prospective birth cohort study utilizing data from The Japan Environment and Children's Study (104,059 participants).
  • Maternal comorbidities were categorized as none, single disease, or multimorbidity (two or more diseases).
  • Offspring neurodevelopment was assessed using the Japanese version of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ-3); multivariate logistic regression was employed for analysis.

Main Results:

  • Multimorbidity was present in 3.6% of pregnant women, single disease in 30.6%, and no disease in 65.8%.
  • Infants of mothers with no disease comorbidity and single disease comorbidity showed similar rates of neurodevelopmental impairment.
  • Significantly higher odds ratios for neurodevelopmental impairment were observed in children born to mothers with multimorbidity compared to healthy mothers.

Conclusions:

  • A clear association exists between the number of maternal comorbidities during pregnancy and offspring developmental delay.
  • Multimorbidity in pregnant women is a potential risk factor for neurodevelopmental delay in their children.
  • Further global research is warranted to confirm and expand upon these findings regarding maternal health and child neurodevelopment.
Abstract

Keywords:
Maternal medicineMultimorbidityPUBLIC HEALTHPaediatric neurologyPregnant Women

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