Labour and delivery complications at birth and later mania - An Irish caseregister study

Background Several reports postulate that manic depression and schizophreni a share environmental risk factors. Although obstetric adversity has been s uggested as a risk factor for schizophrenia, few studies have examined its relationship to bipolar affective disorder. Aims To assess the rate of obstetric complications incurred by patients wit h mania compared with controls. Method From the Dublin Psychiatric Case Register we identified individuals with a discharge diagnosis of mania and traced their birth records. Each ca se was matched with a control of the same gender, born in the same hospital , in the same year, matched for maternal age, parity and social class. Two obstetric complication scales were used to make blind evaluations of labour and delivery data. Results Patients with mania did not experience a greater frequency or sever ity of labour and delivery complications than their matched controls. Rates of obstetric adversity were unrelated to the presence or absence of family history of psychiatric disorder. Obstetric adversity was unrelated to the age at first diagnosis. Conclusions These findings suggest that obstetric adversity is not a risk f actor for later mania. Declaration of interest This study was funded by the Health Research Board, Ireland, and the Stanley Foundation.