Acute maternal stress in pregnancy and schizophrenia in offspring: A cohort prospective study

摘要: Schizophrenia has been linked with intrauterine exposure to maternal stress due bereavement, famine and major disasters. Recent evidence suggests that human vulnerability may be greatest in the first trimester of gestation rodent experiments suggest sex specificity. We aimed describe consequence an acute stress, through a follow-up offspring whose mothers were pregnant during Arab-Israeli war 1967. A priori, we focused on gestational month offspring's sex. In pilot study linking birth records Israel's Psychiatric Registry, analyzed data from cohort 88,829 born Jerusalem 1964–76. Proportional hazards models used estimate relative risk (RR) schizophrenia, according birth, gender other variables, while controlling for father's age potential confounders. Other causes hospitalized psychiatric morbidity (grouped together) comparison. There was raised incidence schizophrenia those who second fetal life June 1967 (RR = 2.3, 1.1–4.7), seen more females (4.3, 1.7–10.7) than males (1.2, 0.4–3.8). Results not explained by secular or seasonal variations, altered weight age. For conditions, RRs increased had third (2.5, 1.2–5.2), also (3.6, 1.3–9.7) (1.8, 0.6–5.2). These findings add growing literature, experimental animals humans, attributing long term consequences stress. They both sex-specificity relatively short time-window effects schizophrenia.