Vidcast: https://youtu.be/oThU1o302_w

Children of mothers who suffered a serious infection during pregnancy have a higher risk of autism and depression.  This is the result of a study looking at some 1.8 million Swedish children that was just published in JAMA Psychiatry.

For those mothers who required inpatient therapy for infection during their pregnancies,  their children had a 79% higher risk of autism and a 24% higher risk of depression.  There was no higher risk of other psychiatric problems including bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.

This study only demonstrates an association without explaining why it happens.  It is a powerful reminder that women and their partners during the childbearing years should be fully vaccinated against all infections.  It is ironic that anti-vaxxer pregnant women may be giving birth to children at higher risk for autism.

#Maternalinfection #vaccination #autism #depression

Benjamin J. S. al-Haddad, Bo Jacobsson, Shilpi Chabra, Dominika Modzelewska, Erin M. Olson, Raphael Bernier, Daniel A. Enquobahrie, Henrik Hagberg, Svante Östling, Lakshmi Rajagopal, Kristina M. Adams Waldorf, Verena Sengpiel. Long-term Risk of Neuropsychiatric Disease After Exposure to Infection In Utero. JAMA Psychiatry, 2019; DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.0029