Prenatal Antipsychotic Exposure and Neuromotor Performance During Infancy

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Katrina Johnson, Emory University; Jamie LaPrairie, Emory University; Patricia Brennan, Emory University; Zachary Stowe, Emory University; D. Jeffrey Newport, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2012-08-01
• Publisher: American Medical Association (AMA)
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: ©2012 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2012.160
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Archives of General Psychiatry
• ISSN: 0003-990X
• Volume: 69
• Issue: 8
• Start Page: 787
• End Page: 794
• Grant/Funding Information: This study was supported by a NARSAD Young Investigator Grant Award (Dr Brennan); Emory University Silvio O. Conte Center for the Neurobiology of Mental Disease grant MH58922; Specialized Center of Research on Sex and Gender Effects grant MH68036; and National Institute of Mental Health grant MH88609.
• Keywords: Science & Technology; OLANZAPINE; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; BIPOLAR DISORDER; ADULT-RATS; NEUROLOGICAL INTERNATIONAL BATTERY; ATYPICAL ANTIPSYCHOTICS; HALOPERIDOL; MATERNAL DEPRESSION; BIRTH-WEIGHT; PREGNANCY; WOMEN; Psychiatry
• Research Categories: Health Sciences, Mental Health; Biology, Neuroscience

Abstract

Context: Despite the expanding clinical utility of antipsychotics beyond psychotic disorders to include depressive, bipolar, and anxiety disorders, reproductive safety data regarding the neurodevelopmental sequelae of fetal antipsychotic exposure are scarce. Objective: To examine whether intrauterine antipsychotic exposure is associated with deficits in neuromotor performance and habituation in 6-month-old infants. Design, Setting, and Participants: A prospective controlled study was conducted from December 1999 through June 2008 at the Infant Development Laboratory of the Emory Psychological Center examining maternalinfant dyads (N=309) at 6 months postpartum with pregnancy exposure to antipsychotics (n=22), antidepressants (n=202), or no psychotropic agents (n=85). Examiners masked to maternal-infant exposure status administered a standardized neuromotor examination (Infant Neurological International Battery [INFANIB]) that tests posture, tone, reflexes, and motor skills and a visual habituation paradigm using a neutral female face. Main Outcome Measures: The INFANIB composite score; number of trials required to achieve a 50% decrease in infant fixation during a visual habituation task; and mean time looking at the stimulus across 10 trials. Results: Infants prenatally exposed to antipsychotics (mean=64.71) showed significantly lower INFANIB scores than those with antidepressant (mean=68.57) or no psychotropic (mean=71.19) exposure, after controlling for significant covariates (F2,281=4.51; P=.01; partial η2=0.033). The INFANIB scores were also significantly associated with maternal psychiatric history, including depression, psychosis, and overall severity/chronicity (P's<.05) and maternal depression during pregnancy was associated with less efficient habituation (r245=0.16; P<.02). There were no significant differences regarding habituation between medication exposure groups. Conclusions: Among 6-month-old infants, a history of intrauterine antipsychotic exposure, compared with antidepressant or no psychotropic exposure, was associated with significantly lower scores on a standard test of neuromotor performance, highlighting the need for further scrutiny of the reproductive safety and neurodevelopmental sequelae of fetal antipsychotic exposure. Disentangling medication effects from maternal illness effects, which also contributed, remains a critical challenge.