Nonaffective psychosis after prenatal exposure to rubella

Objective: The authors' goal was to investigate the suggestion of previous investigations that prenatal viral exposures might increase the later risk of psychotic disorders. Method: They conducted a follow-up study in young a dulthood of a birth cohort that was previously documented, by clinical exam ination and serological testing, to have in utero rubella exposure during t he 1964 rubella epidemic. Data were also obtained from an unexposed birth c ohort and from the Epidemiological Catchment Area survey. Young adult subje cts were administered a standard psychiatric diagnostic interview. The auth ors compared the proportions of subjects with nonaffective psychosis in the exposed and unexposed cohorts. Results: The rubella-exposed subjects, most of whom were exposed in the first trimester, demonstrated a substantially greater risk for nonaffective psychosis than the subjects who were not expo sed to rubella (relative risk = 5.2). Conclusions: There is an association between clinically and serologically diagnosed prenatal viral infection and nonaffective psychosis in adulthood.