Maternal mental health disorders and offspring asthma and allergic diseases: The role of child mental healthShow others and affiliations
2024 (English)In: Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, ISSN 0905-6157, E-ISSN 1399-3038, Vol. 35, no 2, article id e14085Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
BACKGROUND: Maternal psychological stress during pregnancy and postnatally has been shown to be associated with offspring atopic diseases (asthma, atopic dermatitis and allergic rhinitis). The aim of this study was to assess whether this association may be attributable to the child's own mental health disorders.
METHOD: The study population included 15,092 twin children born 2002-2010 in Sweden. Questionnaire data at age 9 years was linked to national patient- and prescription registers. Maternal mental health during pregnancy and 3 years postnatally were identified from diagnosis and medication data (depression, anxiety and stress disorders). Atopic diseases in children were identified from questionnaires, diagnosis and medication data. Child mental health status (depression and anxiety) was identified from questionnaires. Three-way decomposition methods tested for mediation or interaction by child mental health disorders.
RESULTS: Maternal mental health disorders were associated with most child atopic diseases including asthma aRR1.36 (95% CI 1.12, 1.60), and child mental health disorders, aRR1.73 (95% CI 1.56, 1.92). Children with mental health disorders were comorbid for atopic diseases with only asthma reaching statistical significance, aRR1.29 (95% CI 1.14, 1.47). Three-way decomposition found that mediation or interaction by child mental health disorders did not account for the mother mental health and child atopy associations except in parent-report asthma, where child mental health disorders mediated 13.4% (95% CI 2.1, 24.7) of the effect, but not for objectively defined (diagnosis and medication) asthma.
CONCLUSION: The associations between maternal mental health and child asthma and allergic diseases do not appear to be attributable to child mental health disorders.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Munksgaard Forlag, 2024. Vol. 35, no 2, article id e14085
Keywords [en]
Allergic rhinitis, allergy, anxiety, asthma, atopic dermatitis, depression, maternal
National Category
Psychiatry
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:oru:diva-111654DOI: 10.1111/pai.14085ISI: 001163557500001PubMedID: 38366746Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85185693050OAI: oai:DiVA.org:oru-111654DiVA, id: diva2:1839475
Funder
Forte, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and WelfareSwedish Research Council, 2018-02640; 2023-02327Swedish Heart Lung Foundation, 20180512; 20210416Swedish Asthma and Allergy Association, 2020-0008Stiftelsen Frimurare Barnhuset i Stockholm
Note
This work was supported by FORTE and the Commission under a COFAS Marie Curie Fellowship (grant no 2015-01208) and a KI Foundation grant. Financial support was also provided by the Swedish Research Council (grant nos 2018-02640 and 2023-02327) and the Swedish Heart-Lung Foundation (grant nos 20180512 and 20210416), the Swedish Asthma and Allergy Association Research Fund (grant no 2020-0008) and the Foundation Frimurare Barnhuset in Stockholm.
2024-02-212024-02-212024-03-04Bibliographically approved