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25/11/2013
The study, carried out by researchers at Imperial College London and the University of Oulu, Finland, has been published in the journal PLOS ONE, and revealed that mothers who are thought to give birth prematurely are often given an injection of glucocorticoids. This mimics the natural hormone cortisol and is vital for helping to keep a baby's lungs mature. This latest research however, suggests the treatment could also increase the risk of mental health problems, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Concerns have previously been raised that exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids in the womb could have harmful long-term effects on brain development, with scientists establishing a link between stress in pregnancy and symptoms of ADHD in children. As cortisol is produced as a response to stress, it is thought that the hormone could be responsible for the link.
For this new study, researchers looked at 37 children who were exposed to synthetic glucocorticoids before birth and compared them to 185 children who were born at the same gestational age, but did not have glucocorticoid treatment.
In addition to this, a larger comparison group of 6,079 children, matched carefully on pregnancy and infant characteristics, was also examined to confirm the findings.
It was discovered that children who had the treatment had poorer scores on general mental health at ages eight and 16, and were also more likely to show symptoms of ADHD.
Alina Rodriguez, Visiting Professor at the School of Public Health at Imperial College London and the senior author of the study, explained: "There are a lot of studies that have found links between stress in pregnancy and effects on children's mental health, especially ADHD, and this might be related to cortisol.
"Synthetic glucocorticoids mimic the biological reaction when the mother is stressed, so we wanted to see if babies who were exposed to this treatment are affected similarly in terms of mental health outcomes.
"This study suggests there may also be long-term risks for the child's mental health. Although this is the largest study so far to look at these risks, the number of children in our group who were exposed to glucocorticoids was still relatively small. More studies will be needed to confirm the findings."
(JP/CD)
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Steroids For Premature Babies Could Increase Behavioural Problems
A new study has found that steroid injections given to women before premature birth could increase their children's risk of behavioural difficulties later in life.The study, carried out by researchers at Imperial College London and the University of Oulu, Finland, has been published in the journal PLOS ONE, and revealed that mothers who are thought to give birth prematurely are often given an injection of glucocorticoids. This mimics the natural hormone cortisol and is vital for helping to keep a baby's lungs mature. This latest research however, suggests the treatment could also increase the risk of mental health problems, such as attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Concerns have previously been raised that exposure to high levels of glucocorticoids in the womb could have harmful long-term effects on brain development, with scientists establishing a link between stress in pregnancy and symptoms of ADHD in children. As cortisol is produced as a response to stress, it is thought that the hormone could be responsible for the link.
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For this new study, researchers looked at 37 children who were exposed to synthetic glucocorticoids before birth and compared them to 185 children who were born at the same gestational age, but did not have glucocorticoid treatment.
In addition to this, a larger comparison group of 6,079 children, matched carefully on pregnancy and infant characteristics, was also examined to confirm the findings.
It was discovered that children who had the treatment had poorer scores on general mental health at ages eight and 16, and were also more likely to show symptoms of ADHD.
Alina Rodriguez, Visiting Professor at the School of Public Health at Imperial College London and the senior author of the study, explained: "There are a lot of studies that have found links between stress in pregnancy and effects on children's mental health, especially ADHD, and this might be related to cortisol.
"Synthetic glucocorticoids mimic the biological reaction when the mother is stressed, so we wanted to see if babies who were exposed to this treatment are affected similarly in terms of mental health outcomes.
"This study suggests there may also be long-term risks for the child's mental health. Although this is the largest study so far to look at these risks, the number of children in our group who were exposed to glucocorticoids was still relatively small. More studies will be needed to confirm the findings."
(JP/CD)
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