Prenatal depression and risk of child autism-related traits among participants in the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes program.
Lyndsay A Avalos, Aruna Chandran, Marie L Churchill and 21 others
PMID 37526980WHAT IT FOUND
Children of mothers with prenatal depression scored slightly higher on autism-related traits.
The difference was small, averaging 1.31 points on a 195-point scale, but rose with depression severity. This suggests monitoring social development in these children.
Key findings
01Children of individuals with a prenatal depression diagnosis had SRS T-scores that were on average 1.31 points higher than children of individuals without depression.
02The association between prenatal depression and autism-related traits was similar for boys and girls, with no significant difference in the strength of the link between sexes.
03Higher severity of prenatal depressive symptoms showed a dose-response relationship, with severe depression associated with a 4.96 point increase in SRS T-scores compared to mild symptoms.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study excluded mothers who took antidepressants, so the findings do not apply to the more severe cases of depression that are treated with medication. Depression was assessed at various points during pregnancy and postpartum, so the specific timing of the depression's impact on the fetus is unclear. Parents reported on their children's behavior. It is possible that a mother's own depression influenced how she rated her child's social traits, creating a reporting bias. The study could not account for the parents' own autism-related traits, which may be a shared genetic risk factor for both depression and autism.
Declared interests
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as part of the ECHO program. The authors declared no other conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the 1.31-point increase as clinically large for every child. The average difference is small, and most children in the study did not reach the threshold for significant autism-related traits. The risk is concentrated in cases of severe depressive symptoms.