Acetaminophen during pregnancy may increase risk of hyperactivity in kids

“For example, untreated fever during pregnancy can lead to premature labour”.

A generic image of Tylenol acetaminophen pills. Prescription medicines that contain it include oxycodone and tramadol. The study also relied on parents to accurately recall and report on their acetaminophen use and on any behavior issues observed in their kids.

Rebecca Hoover, a pharmacist and clinical assistant professor of pharmacy practice and administrative sciences at Idaho State University, has studied this issue and said the new findings will help inform patients anxious about taking pain relievers and give them more information about the possible risks.

Postnatal maternal paracetamol use and paracetamol use by partners were not associated with behavioural problems.

“What I hope is that this doesn’t shift women into using other, less preferred, forms of treatment”.

A common over-the-counter pain medication has been associated with increased risk of developing behavioral issues for children who were exposed to the drug in utero, according to a study published today in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics. Prenatal exposure to the medication was associated with a higher risk of having children who exhibit emotional or behavioral symptoms, the researchers said.

Acetaminophen, which is also known by the name paracetamol, is found in many different drugs.

Compared to women who reported no acetaminophen use at 18 weeks of pregnancy, those who took the medication at that point of gestation were 42% more likely to report hyperactivity and 31% more likely to report conduct problems in the children they bore. Factoring these into their analysis, the researchers discovered a mother using acetaminophen at 18 weeks of pregnancy was associated with a greater chance of her child becoming hyperactive or developing conduct problems. At 32 weeks, 3,381 mothers, or 42 percent, reported using it. Among 7-year-olds whose mothers took acetaminophen during their second or third trimester, 6.3 percent had overall behavioral difficulties, while 4.3 percent of those whose mothers did not take the drug had such problems. The study reports 5 percent of children had behavioral problems.

Data from almost 8,000 mothers, along with their children and partners, suggests prenatal use of paracetamol at 18 and 32 weeks of pregnancy increases the risk of conduct problems and hyperactivity symptoms in children.

“The take-aways here are that physicians should not change clinical practice until definitive prospective research is done and, most importantly, patients should not be frightened away from the many benefits of acetaminophen”, ACOG officials said.

To explore the connection between prenatal acetaminophen use and behavior issues in children, researchers examined data on how many women reported taking the drug at 18 weeks and 32 weeks of pregnancy as well as when their children were 5 years old.

Finally, the authors of the study acted to avoid a common problem with research that links adverse pregnancy outcomes to certain medications: that women whose children have some identifiable problem are more likely to recall taking medications during pregnancy. She added that her own research is focused on examining the effects of pollutants on pregnant women and children.

While the authors acknowledge the study had its limitations, including a lack of information on dosage or duration of use, they suggest their findings have important implications on public health advice, given the widespread use of the drug during pregnancy.

Dr Grzeskowiak said paracetamol was still the first choice of painkiller for pregnant women because others, such as anti-inflammatory drugs like ibuprofen (the active ingredient in Nurofen) had been linked to an increased risk of miscarriage during early in pregnancy, and harm to the fetus’ kidneys and heart later in pregnancy.