A nationwide study of the risks of major mental disorders among the offspring of parents with rheumatoid arthritis

• Authors: Hsien-Jane Chiu, Ministry of Health and Welfare; Cheuk-Kwan Sun, E-Da Hospital; Shih-Jen Tsai, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei; Ya-Mei Bai, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei; Kuo-Chuan Hung, Chi Mei Medical Center; Ju-Wei Hsu, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei; Kai-Lin Huang, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei; Tung-Ping Su, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei; Tzeng-Ji Chen, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University; Andrew Sun, Emory University; Yu-Shian Cheng, Tsyr-Huey Mental Hospital; Mu-Hong Chen, Veterans General Hospital-Taipei
• Journal Title: Scientific Reports
• Volume: Volume 12, Number 1
• Publisher: Springer Nature Limited | 2022-12-01, Pages 4962-4962
• Type of Work: Article | Final Publisher PDF
• Publisher DOI: http://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-08834-5
• Subjects: Health Sciences, Mental Health
• Keywords: Arthritis, Rheumatoid; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity; Cohort Studies; Depressive Disorder, Major; Female; Humans; Male; Mental Disorders; Mothers; Parents; Risk Factors

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may share genomic risks with certain mental disorders. This study aimed at investigating associations between parental RA and risks of mental disorders in offspring. Using the National Health Insurance Research Database (2001–2010), we conducted a matched cohort study involving two parent–child cohorts (i.e., RA-parent–child cohort and non-RA-parent–child cohort) between which risks of major mental disorders in offspring were compared. There were 23,981 parent–child pairs in the RA-parent–child cohort and 239,810 in the non-RA-parent–child cohort. Preliminary analysis demonstrated increased risks of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) [Odds ratio (OR) 1.47; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.05–2.07], attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) [OR 1.34; (95% CI 1.17–1.54)], bipolar disorder [OR 1.41 (95% CI 1.17–1.70)], and major depressive disorder [OR 1.20 (95% CI 1.07–1.35)] associated with parental RA. Sub-group analysis further showed higher risks of the four disorders in children of mothers with RA but not those from fathers with RA. Higher risks of ASDs and ADHD were not noted in children of mothers with RA before childbirth. Maternal RA, but not paternal RA or mothers diagnosed with RA before childbirth, was associated with increased risks of multiple mental disorders in their offspring, suggesting potential contributions of maternal genetic factors to ASDs and ADHD development in offspring.