O'Connor M J, Kasari C
Department of Psychiatry, University of California at Los Angeles, and Neuropsychiatric Institute, 90024, USA.
Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 2000 Jul;24(7):1084-92.
This study examined the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and self-report of depressive symptoms in 5- to 6-year-old children. Higher levels of prenatal alcohol exposure were hypothesized to be associated with endorsement of a greater number of depressive symptoms in children. It was also hypothesized that maternal depression, although associated with drinking behavior, would contribute independently to outcome. Finally, the mother's behavior toward the child, as well as current drinking practices, were postulated to mediate the relationship between prenatal alcohol exposure and child depressive symptoms.
Participants were 41 mother-child dyads who had been followed longitudinally since the children were 1 year of age. Self-report questionnaires for maternal and child depression were used.
Results revealed that prenatal alcohol exposure, maternal depression, and child gender seemed to be highly associated with child depressive symptoms. Girls who had higher levels of prenatal alcohol exposure and whose mothers acknowledged higher levels of depression endorsed the highest number of depressive symptoms. Neither the mother's behavior in interaction with the child nor her current level of alcohol consumption mediated the relationship.
The importance of considering prenatal alcohol exposure as a risk variable in the prediction of childhood-onset depression and the possible neurological mechanisms underlying depression in children with alcohol exposure in utero are discussed.
本研究调查了产前酒精暴露与5至6岁儿童抑郁症状自我报告之间的关联。研究假设，较高水平的产前酒精暴露与儿童更多的抑郁症状表现相关。研究还假设，母亲抑郁虽然与饮酒行为有关，但会独立影响结果。最后，推测母亲对孩子的行为以及当前的饮酒习惯在产前酒精暴露与儿童抑郁症状之间的关系中起中介作用。
研究对象为41对母婴二元组，自孩子1岁起对其进行纵向跟踪研究。使用了母亲和儿童抑郁的自我报告问卷。
结果显示，产前酒精暴露、母亲抑郁和儿童性别似乎与儿童抑郁症状高度相关。产前酒精暴露水平较高且母亲承认抑郁程度较高的女孩表现出的抑郁症状最多。母亲与孩子互动时的行为及其当前饮酒量均未介导这种关系。
讨论了将产前酒精暴露视为儿童期抑郁症预测中的一个风险变量的重要性，以及子宫内酒精暴露儿童抑郁症潜在的神经学机制。
