The effects of in utero exposure to atypical antipsychotics on infant birth weight are unknown.

To determine whether atypical and typical antipsychotics differ in their effects on birth weight after maternal exposure during pregnancy.

Prospective data on gestational age and birth weight collected by the National Teratology Information Service for infants exposed to typical (n=45) and atypical (n=25) antipsychotics was compared with data for a reference group of infants (n=38).

Infants exposed to atypical antipsychotics had a significantly higher incidence of large for gestational age (LGA) than both comparison groups and a mean birth weight significantly heavier than those exposed to typical antipsychotics. In contrast those exposed to typical antipsychotics had a significantly lower mean birth weight and a higher incidence of small for gestational age infants than the reference group.

In utero exposure to atypical antipsychotic drugs may increase infant birth weight and risk of LGA.

Late-gestational serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI) exposure has been linked to adverse neonatal outcomes; however, the impact of timing and duration of exposure is unknown.

To determine whether late-gestational exposure to an SRI is associated with increased risk of adverse neonatal outcome relative to early exposure.

Population-based maternal and neonatal health records were linked to prenatal maternal prescription records for an SRI medication (n=3500).

After controlling for maternal illness and duration of exposure, using propensity score matching, neonatal outcomes did not differ between late and early exposure (P IQ>0.05). After controlling for maternal illness, longer prenatal exposure increased the risks of lower birth weight, respiratory distress and reduced gestational age (P<0.05).

Using population health data, length of gestational SRI exposure, rather than timing, increased the risk for neonatal respiratory distress, lower birth weight and reduced gestational age, even when controlling for maternal illness and medication dose. These findings highlight the importance of distinguishing the specific impact of medication exposure from exposure to maternal illness itself.

Antidepressant use during the gestational period is a controversial topic.

To determine whether duration of antidepressant use during the first trimester increases the risk of major congenital malformations in offspring of women diagnosed with psychiatric disorders.

A case-control study was performed among women who had been pregnant between January 1998 and December 2002. Data were obtained from a Medication and Pregnancy registry, built by linking three databases from the province of Quebec, and a self-administered questionnaire. Women eligible for this study had to be 15–45 years old at the beginning of pregnancy, have at least one diagnosis of psychiatric disorder before pregnancy, have used antidepressants for ≥ 30 days in the year prior to pregnancy and have a pregnancy ending with a delivery. Cases were defined as any major congenital malformation diagnosed in the offspring's first year of life. Odds ratios, adjusted for relevant confounders, were estimated using logistic regression.

Among the 2329 women meeting the inclusion criteria, 189 (8.1%) infants were born with a major congenital malformation. Duration of antidepressant use during the first trimester of pregnancy was not associated with an increased risk of major congenital malformations: 1–30 days v. 0 day, adjusted OR=1.23 (95% CI 0.77–1.98); 31–60 days v. 0 day, adjusted OR=1.03 (95% CI 0.63–1.69); ≥ 61 days v. 0 day, adjusted OR=0.92 (95% CI 0.50–1.69).

These data do not support an association between duration of antidepressant use during the first trimester of pregnancy and major congenital malformations in the offspring of women with psychiatric disorders. These findings should help clinicians decide whether to continue antidepressant therapy during pregnancy.

Few studies have examined the rates of physical disorders in those with recurrent depression.

To examine self-reported physical disorders in people with recurrent depression compared with a psychiatrically healthy control group.

As part of a genetic case-control association study, 1546 participants with recurrent depression and 884 controls were interviewed about lifetime ever treatment for 16 different physical health disorders.

The cases group had a significantly higher frequency of 14 physical disorders and more obesity than the control group. After controlling for age, gender, body mass index (BMI) and multiple testing, those in the cases group had significantly higher rates of gastric ulcer, rhinitis/hay fever, osteoarthritis, thyroid disease, hypertension and asthma.

People with recurrent depression show high rates of many common physical disorders. Although this can be partly explained by BMI, shared aetiological pathways such as dysfunction of the hypothalamic–pituitary axis may have a role.

We previously found that children of parents with depression showed impaired performance on a task of emotional categorisation.

To test the hypothesis that children of parents with depression would show abnormal neural responses in the anterior cingulate cortex, a brain region involved in the integration of emotional and cognitive information.

Eighteen young people (mean age 19.8 years) with no personal history of depression but with a biological parent with a history of major depression (FH+ participants) and 16 controls (mean age 19.9 years) underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging while completing an emotional counting Stroop task.

Controls showed significant activation in the pregenual anterior cingulate cortex to both positive and negative words during the emotional Stroop task. This activation was absent in FH+ participants.

Our findings show that people at increased familial risk of depression demonstrate impaired modulation of the anterior cingulate cortex in response to emotionally valenced stimuli.

There is evidence that the prevalence of common mental disorders varies across Europe.

To compare prevalence of common mental disorders in general practice attendees in six European countries.

Unselected attendees to general practices in the UK, Spain, Portugal, Slovenia, Estonia and The Netherlands were assessed for major depression, panic syndrome and other anxiety syndrome. Prevalence of DSM–IV major depression, other anxiety syndrome and panic syndrome was compared between the UK and other countries after taking account of differences in demographic factors and practice consultation rates.

Prevalence was estimated in 2344 men and 4865 women. The highest prevalence for all disorders occurred in the UK and Spain, and lowest in Slovenia and The Netherlands. Men aged 30–50 and women aged 18–30 had the highest prevalence of major depression; men aged 40–60 had the highest prevalence of anxiety, and men and women aged 40–50 had the highest prevalence of panic syndrome. Demographic factors accounted for the variance between the UK and Spain but otherwise had little impact on the significance of observed country differences.

These results add to the evidence for real differences between European countries in prevalence of psychological disorders and show that the burden of care on general practitioners varies markedly between countries.

Advocates of expanded mental health treatment assert that mental disorders are as disabling as physical disorders, but little evidence supports this assertion.

To establish the disability and treatment of specific mental and physical disorders in high-income and low- and middle-income countries.

Community epidemiological surveys were administered in 15 countries through the World Health Organization World Mental Health (WMH) Survey Initiative.

Respondents in both high-income and low- and middle-income countries attributed higher disability to mental disorders than to the commonly occurring physical disorders included in the surveys. This pattern held for all disorders and also for treated disorders. Disaggregation showed that the higher disability of mental than physical disorders was limited to disability in social and personal role functioning, whereas disability in productive role functioning was generally comparable for mental and physical disorders.

Despite often higher disability, mental disorders are under-treated compared with physical disorders in both high-income and in low- and middle-income countries.

Long-term data on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following accidents are scarce.

To assess and predict PTSD in people 3 years after severe accidental injury.

Severely injured patients were recruited consecutively from the intensive care unit (n=121) and assessed within 1 month of the trauma. Follow-up interviews were conducted 6 months, 12 months and 36 months later; 90 patients participated in all four interviews. Symptoms were assessed using the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale.

Post-traumatic stress disorder was diagnosed in 6% of patients 2 weeks after the accident, in 2% after 1 year and in 4% after 3 years. Robust predictors of later PTSD symptom level were intrusive symptoms shortly after the accident and biographical risk factors. There were individual changes over time between the categories PTSD, sub-threshold PTSD and no PTSD. Whereas PTSD symptom severity was low or decreased for most of the patients, some of them showed an increase or a delayed onset. Patients with persisting PTSD symptoms at 6 months and patients with delayed onset of symptoms are at risk of long-term PTSD.

The prevalence of PTSD was low over the whole period of 3 years.

Risk assessment of future violent acts is of great importance for both public protection and care planning. Structured clinical assessments offer a method by which accurate assessments could be achieved.

To test the efficacy of the Historical, Clinical and Risk Management Scales (HCR–20) structured risk assessment scheme on a large sample of male forensic psychiatric patients discharged from medium secure units in the UK.

In a pseudo-prospective study, 887 male patients were followed for at least 2 years. The HCR-20 was completed using only pre-discharge information, and violent and other offending behaviour post-discharge was obtained from official records.

The HCR–20 total score was a good predictor of both violent and other offences following discharge. The historical and risk sub-scales were both able to predict offences, but the clinical sub-scale did not produce significant predictions. The predictive efficacy was highest for short periods (under 1 year) and showed a modest fall in efficacy over longer periods (5 years).

The results provide a strong evidence base that the HCR–20 is a good predictor of both violent and non-violent offending following release from medium secure units for male forensic psychiatric patients in the UK.