BACKGROUND

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are prescribed in 2-8% during pregnancy. Whether prenatal exposure to SSRIs has long-term effects on the children's development is unknown.

AIM

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of prenatal exposure to SSRIs on children's cognitive, motor, and behavioral outcomes at 2.5 years, adjusted for maternal depression and anxiety.

METHODS

In a prospective, longitudinal cohort-study we included 111 pregnant women treated either or not with an SSRI. We examined cognitive and motor development of their children at 2.5 years, using the Bayley Scale of Infant and Toddler Development, 3rd Edition, and measured emotional and behavioral problems using the parent-rated Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Maternal depression and anxiety was determined during pregnancy and at the children's assessment. Differences of normed cognitive, motor, and behavioral scores between SSRI-exposed and non-SSRI-exposed children were tested using multiple linear regression analyses.

RESULTS

We examined 102 children. SSRI-exposed children had lower scaled scores on cognition and gross motor development than non-SSRI-exposed children: 9.0 ± 1.4 (mean ± SD) versus 9.9 ± 1.7 [P = 0.004], and 7.9 ± 2.2 versus 9.0 ± 2.5 [P = 0.01], respectively. Differences remained significant after adjusting for maternal depression and anxiety and other confounders in various models (mean difference for cognition 0.8 to 0.9 points, for gross motor 1.1 to 1.2 points). Only after adjusting for severity of maternal anxiety, differences in gross motor scores lost significance.

CONCLUSIONS

Prenatal exposure to SSRIs is associated with poorer cognitive and gross motor development of the children at 2.5 years. Effects on gross motor development disappeared after correction for severity of maternal anxiety.