A behavioural teratologic study on offspring of self-poisoned pregnant women

Abstract

Ninety-three cases born from women who attempted suicide by taking large doses of chemicals and eight cases who had mothers affected by a chemical poisoning as accident during pregnancy were studied. Data of birth weight and gestational time, congenital anomalies and postnatal disorders were obtained in cases and matched controls (sociological twins). Test examinations were performed in both cases--controls and their mothers in the home of families. The mothers of index children had a lower socioeconomic status and more were unmarried than the Hungarian pregnant population at large. The behaviour of index and control mothers showed some obvious differences. The bivariate analyses indicated some possible teratogenic effect of maternal poisoning, but it was not confirmed by multivariate analysis except lower birth weight. Thus differences between cases and control were explained mainly by the maternal behavioural factors.