New Study Links Postpartum Depression in Either Parent to Increased Autism Risk in Children
- 3 days ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
A large-scale, prospective study utilizing nationwide data from Sweden has identified a significant association between parental postpartum depression (PPD) and an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring. PPD, a form of unipolar major depressive disorder characterized by perinatal onset, reportedly affects 7–20% of new mothers. While previous research had associated parental psychiatric history with increased likelihood of neurodevelopmental conditions, this is among the first systematic studies to prospectively examine the impact of clinically diagnosed PPD in both mothers and fathers on ASD risk.
The study analyzed a nationwide cohort of 1,781,349 live births in Sweden between 1997 and 2021, tracking outcomes through December 31, 2022. PPD was defined as any unipolar depression diagnosis occurring within the first postpartum year.
The research revealed that the magnitude of the association between PPD and ASD increased comparably when either parent was diagnosed with PPD, and increased further when both parents were diagnosed.
Key findings regarding ASD diagnosis prevalence (cases per 100,000 person-years) among the offspring were:
Parents without PPD: 232 per 100,000 person-years.
Mother only with PPD: 574.3 per 100,000 person-years (4.6% of children).
Father only with PPD: 589.0 per 100,000 person-years (5.3% of children).
Both parents with PPD: 1177.3 per 100,000 person-years (8.8% of children).
When comparing risk using unadjusted hazard ratios (HR), offspring risk was initially 2.56 when the mother had PPD, 2.59 for fathers, and 5.54 when both parents had PPD.
After adjusting for potential confounding factors, including parental depression history, antidepressant use, socioeconomic factors, and other parental psychiatric diagnoses assigned before childbirth, the association was partially reduced but remained significant. For instance, after adjusting for parental depression history and other covariates, the HR for ASD was 1.53 for mothers, 1.71 for fathers, and 2.19 when both parents were affected. Further adjustment for antidepressant use and any prior psychiatric history did not significantly diminish this remaining association.
The observation that the association increased when either parent was diagnosed, and was highest when both parents had PPD, suggests a pattern indicative of shared genetic influences (pleiotropy). Since PPD occurs after birth, and ASD is believed to likely develop during the prenatal period, PPD is unlikely to be a cause of ASD. Instead, the association may reflect enduring vulnerabilities or common genetic variants inherited from both parents. The finding that paternal PPD also independently increases ASD risk further supports a genetic link, as fathers are not subject to the biological factors specific to pregnancy and delivery.
This large-scale study underscores the importance of parental mental health, noting that the association was not fully accounted for by pre-delivery psychiatric history alone.
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Keywords: Postpartum Depression
Postpartum Depression
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