Psychotropic drugs in pregnancy - do they reduce or increase the risks for the fetus? Part One: antidepressants, antipsychotics
Abstract
There is a trend of increasing prescription rates of psychotropic drugs in females of fertile age, including growing numberof pregnant women. The main groups of psychotropics used in psychiatry are antidepressants, antipsychotics, moodstabilizers, and anxiolytics.
Both drugs and untreated psychiatric disorders represent risk factors for adverse pregnancyoutcomes and poor neonatal adaptation of an exposed newborn. We review current published data on the effects of prenatalexposure to untreated depressive and psychotic disorders, antidepressants and antipsychotics on the fetus development,pregnancy outcomes, and neonatal adaptation.
Available data suggest that antidepressants and antipsychotics donot have a significant teratogenic potential and do not clinically significantly increase the risk of adverse pregnancy andfetus development outcomes. However, it appears that the drugs may increase the risk of neonatal withdrawal syndrome,a complication of the newborn's neonatal adaptation.
Nevertheless, the risks for fetus resulting from untreated depressionand/or psychotic disorders in pregnancy, are more severe than risks associated with maternal use of antidepressants andantipsychotics during pregnancy.