There is a relationship between symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorders (ASD), and the consumption of paracetamol during pregnancy, according to a study by the Barcelona Institute of Global Health (ISGlobal) with data from more than 70,000 European children.
The research, published by the European Journal of Epidemiology, led by the Institute of Global Health of Barcelona (ISGlobal), a center promoted by the La Caixa Foundation, has analyzed 73,881 children from six European cohorts (testing groups) of which data on their prenatal or postnatal exposure to paracetamol and at least one result on symptoms of ASD or ADHD are available.
Depending on these groups, between 14 % and 56% of the mothers of these boys and girls reported that they had taken paracetamol while pregnant.
The results reveal that boys and girls who had been exposed to paracetamol before birth were more likely to develop symptoms of ASD and ADHD later than those not exposed (19% and 21% more, respectively).
As reported by ISGlobal in a statement, it is estimated that between 46% and 56% of pregnant women in developed countries resort at some point to pregnancy to paracetamol, a medicine considered the most safest painkiller and antipyretic during that period and in childhood.
Our data are consistent with what previous work indicated. We also see that prenatal exposure to paracetamol affects boys and girls similarly, as we see virtually no differences, says ISGlobal researcher SÃlvia Alemany, first author of the study.
For his part, Jordi Sunyer, also a researcher at ISGlobal, has acknowledged that the results of the study address part of the weaknesses of previous meta-analyses.
Taking into account all the evidence on the use of paracetamol and neurological development, we agree with the recommendations that indicate that, although paracetamol should not be suppressed in pregnant or childhood women, it should only be used when necessary, explains this researcher.
Other studies on paracetamol
It’s not the first study to point in this direction. According to Alemany, they studies are criticized for their heterogeneity, so on this occasion, an effort has been made to harmonize how the symptoms of ADHD and ASD have been evaluated or defined, as well as what it means to be exposed to paracetamol.
The sample is comprehensive and analyzes together cohorts from different European countries (the United Kingdom, Denmark, the Netherlands, Italy, Greece, and Spain). In all the cohorts studied, the criterion has been the same, so we have reduced the heterogeneity of criteria from which previous studies suffered, says the researcher.
Exposure to paracetamol in minors after pregnancy
The study also analyzed exposure to paracetamol for minors after pregnancy, with no association between paracetamol taken in childhood and the symptoms of ASD in this case. Despite the results, experts recommend further research, due to the heterogeneity of exposure in the various cohorts studied, which ranged from 6 % to 92.8 %.
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