Maternal thyroid function during pregnancy and offspring depression and anxiety: A study from Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children

摘要

Background: Brain development can be affected by several factors of which iodine and thyroid hormones contribute the lion share. Maternal thyroid dysfunction during pregnancy can affect neurobehavioral disorders in the offspring. We investigated the relationship between maternal thyroid function during pregnancy and offspring depression and anxiety. Methods: Data were sourced from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). A total of 4,839 mother-child pairs were included. Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, free thyroxine (fT4) and autoantibodies to thyroid peroxidase (TPO-Ab) were assessed during the first trimester of their pregnancy. Child depression and anxiety were assessed using the Development and Well-Being Assessment at age 91 months and 15 years old and were coded according to DSM-IV criteria. The odds of presenting with depression and anxiety were estimated using generalized estimating equations model. Results: The levels of maternal thyroxine hormone during the first trimester of pregnancy was associated with child depression [OR=1.21, 95% CI: 1.00-1.14]. An increase of one unit standard deviation distance from the mean level of fT4 during pregnancy increases the odds of child depression at age 15 by 30% after adjusted for TPO-Ab, maternal age, body mass index, gender, birth weight, maternal smoking, maternal depression, gestational hypertension, zinc and iodine intake during pregnancy [OR= 1.30, 95% CI: 1.02-1.65]. There was no relation between maternal levels of TSH, fT4 and TPO-Ab and childhood anxiety. Conclusions: An increased level of thyroxine from the mean value during the first trimester of pregnancy is associated with increased risk of offspring depression. This finding suggests that the level of thyroxine in early gestation influences fetal brain development which determines neurobehavioral changes later in life.