Externalizing and Attentional Behaviors in Children of Depressed Mothers Treated With a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Antidepressant During Pregnancy

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate attentional and activity behaviors in 4-year-olds following prenatal selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) exposure. DESIGN: Prospective cohort design. SETTING: Tertiary care center. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-two 4-year-olds with prolonged prenatal SSRI medication exposure and 14 children without prenatal exposure. MAIN EXPOSURE: Prenatal SSRI exposure. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Group differences in externalizing behaviors (according to the Child Behavior Checklist) and direct observations of child attention, activity, and impulsiveness in a laboratory setting using the procedure by Crowell and colleagues were compared, including measures of the duration of prenatal SSRI exposure, umbilical cord drug levels, a history of poor neonatal adaptation, and maternal mood. RESULTS: Externalizing behaviors did not differ between groups. Maternal depression and anxiety at the 4-year follow-up were associated with increased reports of externalizing behaviors. Increased externalizing behaviors were associated with increased umbilical cord drug levels (F(1,34) = 6.3; P = .02), but when controlling for maternal depressed mood at the 4-year follow-up, such levels only accounted for 11.2% of the behavioral outcomes (P>.05). On direct observation, the persistence score for child behavior was significantly lower in the exposed group. Increased aggressiveness scores were associated with a history of poor neonatal adaptation, even when parental report of stress was added to the model (F(1,34) = 4.0; P = .03); however, neither parental report of stress nor poor neonatal adaptation were significant (both P = .09), suggesting that both are important, if not unique, predictors of child behavior. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that the best predictors of externalizing behaviors at age 4 years are current maternal mood and parental stress, regardless of prenatal depressed mood and SSRI treatment during pregnancy. It remains uncertain whether poor neonatal adaptation can be excluded as a possible predictor of externalizing behaviors.