ArticleThe Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry2025
Associations of maternal perinatal depressive disorders with autism spectrum disorder in offspring: Findings from a data-linkage cohort study.
Article in The Australian and New Zealand journal of psychiatry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Prenatal maternal psychological distress and the risk of autism spectrum disorders in offspring: results from a meta-analysis of observational studies.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Pooled it
- Associations between Prenatal Perceived Stress and Child Autism-Related Traits in the ECHO Cohort.The Journal of pediatrics · 2026Article
- Noncoding RNAs and their influence on maternal mental health: insights into perinatal depression: a review.Molecular biology reports · 2025Review
- The association between parental postpartum depression and offspring autism spectrum disorder.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThere is limited research on the association between maternal depression and autism spectrum disorder, and existing studies face significant limitations, including inadequate control for confounders, reliance on self-reported data, small sample sizes and lack of investigation into mediating factors. This study addresses these gaps by examining the direct relationship and the potential mediating effects of preterm birth, low birth weight and low Apgar scores.
methodsWe analysed linked administrative health data involving 223,068 mother-offspring pairs in New South Wales, Australia. Maternal perinatal depressive disorders and offspring autism spectrum disorder were assessed using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision, Australian Modification (ICD-10 AM). A generalised linear model was employed to examine the association. The mediation effects of preterm birth, low birth weight and low Apgar scores were assessed through mediation analysis.
resultsAfter adjusting for a range of potential confounders, offspring of mothers with antenatal, postnatal and overall perinatal depressive disorders had a 61% (risk ratio = 1.61, 95% confidence interval = [1.12, 2.32]), 85% (risk ratio = 1.85, 95% confidence interval = [1.20, 2.86]) and 80% (risk ratio = 1.80, 95% confidence interval = [1.33, 2.43]) higher risk of autism spectrum disorder, respectively. Only about 1.29% and 1.31% of the effect of maternal antenatal depressive disorders on offspring autism spectrum disorder was mediated by preterm birth and low Apgar scores, respectively. Low birth weight had no significant mediating effect on the association.
conclusionMaternal perinatal depressive disorders are associated with an increased risk of autism spectrum disorder in offspring. Preterm birth and low Apgar scores were weak mediators of this association. Early intervention strategies that aim to enhance maternal mental health and mitigate the risk of exposed offspring are needed.
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