Prenatal Maternal Bereavement and Its Association With Intellectual Disability in the Offspring

• Published in: Psychosomatic medicine 2021-10, Vol.83 (8), p.887-893
• Main Authors: Su, Xiujuan, Yu, Yongfu, Meng, Lulu, Duan, Tony, Zhao, Yan, László, Krisztina D., Valdimarsdóttir, Unnur Anna, Hua, Jing, Li, Jiong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Original
• ISSN: 0033-3174; 1534-7796; 1534-7796
• DOI: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000000990

OBJECTIVEThis study aimed to examine the association of a mother's loss of a close relative before or during pregnancy with intellectual disability (ID) in the offspring. METHODSWe performed a nationwide population-based cohort study based on Danish national registries. All live-born singletons born in Denmark during the 1978-2016 period (n = 2,216,601) were followed up starting from birth to 38 years of age. Log-linear Poisson regression was used to estimate the association between maternal bereavement (the death of an older child, a partner, or a parent 1 year before or during pregnancy) and the risk of ID in the offspring. RESULTSMaternal bereavement during or before pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of ID (incidence rate ratio [IRR] = 1.15; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.04-1.28). The risk of ID was increased by 27% when maternal bereavement occurred during pregnancy (IRR = 1.27; 95% CI = 1.08-1.49). When stratifying on the child's sex, we also observed an increased risk of ID associated with maternal bereavement during pregnancy both for male (IRR = 1.25; 95% CI = 1.02-1.53) and for female (IRR = 1.31; 95% CI = 1.02-1.69), respectively. The IRRs for unnatural death of a relative were also elevated (IRR = 1.22; 95% CI = 0.91-1.64) in general, although the difference was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONSOur findings suggest that prenatal stress due to maternal loss of a close relative may increase the risk of offspring's ID of both sexes, in particular when the loss happened during pregnancy.