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Perinatal Complications in Offspring of Psychotic Parents

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

Gretty Mizrahi Mirdal ,
David Rosenthal ,
Paul H. Wender  and
Fini Schulsinger
Gretty Mizrahi Mirdal
Affiliation:
Institute of Clinical Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Njalsgade 90, 2300 Copenhagen S
David Rosenthal
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Psychology, Dept of Health, Education and Welfare, National Institute of Mental Health, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, Maryland 20014
Paul H. Wender
Affiliation:
University of Utah, Medical Center, 50 North Medical Dr, Salt Lake City, Utah 84132
Fini Schulsinger
Affiliation:
Municipal Hospital, Ø. Farimagsgade, 1353 Copenhagen K.
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Summary

The birth records of 78 subjects born to psychotic parents and 72 subjects born to normal parents were studied.

No significant differences in the rates of pregnancy and birth complications (PBCs) were found between the offspring of psychotic parents and normal control parents. There were no differences between offspring born to psychotic mothers compared to psychotic fathers. Neither the onset of the parent's illness, nor the mother's age at delivery, nor the sex of the offspring seemed to influence the rate of PBCs. The offspring of chronic schizophrenic mothers and manic-depressive fathers had lower PBC rates than the offspring of parents of other diagnostic categories. The parents of these two groups, which were of a limited size, did not differ on any variable of significance, excepting the time of their first psychiatric hospital admission.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 130 , Issue 5 , May 1977 , pp. 495 - 505
Copyright
Copyright © Royal College of Psychiatrists, 1977 

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