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» Go to news mainMedia release: Researchers at Dalhousie University find pregnancy may increase risk of mental illness in people with multiple sclerosis
Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025 (Halifax) __ Pregnant people with multiple sclerosis (MS) have a higher chance of experiencing mental illness both during their pregnancy and in the first years after they give birth compared to those without the disease, according to a study published today in Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology .
"Previous studies have shown that women with MS are more likely to have depression, anxiety disorders and bipolar disorder compared to women without MS," said study author Dr. Ruth Ann Marrie of Dalhousie University and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.
"Mental health struggles can affect both parents and kids, making it important to understand how mental health challenges around pregnancy affect people with MS."
The study involved 894,852 pregnant people. Of the group, 1,745 had MS, 5,954 had epilepsy, 4,924 people had irritable bowel disease, and 13,002 people had diabetes. They were matched to 869,227 pregnant people who did not have any of those conditions.
Researchers looked at health records for people who gave birth over a 15-year span, from two years before conception to three years after the participants gave birth.
They then calculated how many participants had newly diagnosed or existing mental illness during pregnancy and also in the first, second and third years after giving birth. Mental illnesses included anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder, psychosis, suicide attempts and substance abuse.
They found that mental illness affected 42 per cent of people with MS during pregnancy and increased to 50 per cent in the first year after giving birth, compared to 30 per cent of people without MS during pregnancy and 38 per cent in the first year after birth.
Eight per cent of those with MS had new mental illness diagnoses during pregnancy and 14 per cent had new diagnoses in the first year after birth, compared to seven per cent and 11 per cent of those without MS.
In addition, researchers found that people with MS had an increased risk of all specific mental illnesses except suicide attempts. They also found that substance use increased in people with MS from 0.54 per cent during pregnancy to six per cent after giving birth.
"These findings emphasize the need for preventive and early treatment of mental illness," said Dr. Marrie. "Future studies should look at how MS affects mental health in mothers during and after pregnancy and if it's worse in different stages of MS. Doctors should know about these risks, make sure to check mental health and provide treatment if needed."
The study was supported by MS Canada and ICES, formerly the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences.
Find out more about MS at BrainandLife.org.
Media contact:
Alison Auld
Senior Research Reporter
Dalhousie University
Cell: 1-902-220-0491
Email: alison.auld@dal.ca
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