Posted by River1924 on February 8, 2006, at 0:41:17
Neonatal Withdrawal Symptoms Seen With in Utero Exposure to SSRIs
Reuters Health Information 2006. © 2006 Reuters Ltd.
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Fetal exposure to SSRIs has been linked to major congenital malformations, but there is growing evidence that it may also be tied to NAS, senior author Dr. Gil Klinger, from Schneider Children's Medical Center of Israel in Petah Tiqwa, and colleagues note.
In the present study, symptoms of NAS were compared in 60 term infants with prolonged in utero exposure to SSRIs and in 60 similar infants without this exposure. Symptoms were rated using a standard measure called the Finnegan score: 0 to 3 is normal, 4 to 7 is mild NAS, and 8 or above is severe NAS.
The researchers' findings appear in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine for February.
In the SSRI-exposed group, 8 infants had severe NAS and 10 had mild NAS. By contrast, all of the unexposed group had normal Finnegan scores.
Among children with severe NAS, the average maximum Finnegan score occurred within 2 days of birth. However, in a few cases, the maximum score was not reached until 4 days after birth.
"Infants exposed to SSRIs should be closely monitored after birth by using a standardized protocol for a minimum of 48 hours," the authors advise. "Follow-up of exposed infants, particularly those who develop severe symptoms, is needed to assess the long-term effects of prolonged exposure to SSRIs."
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2006;160:173-176.
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