Taking antidepressants during pregnancy does not lead to epilepsy in infants, new study

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – Taking antidepressants during pregnancy has been a concern for many expectant mothers. 

A growing body of research points to evidence that it’s not the antidepressants that will harm newborns. It’s when mothers neglect treatment for depression that can put their babies at risk for seizures and epilepsy. 

News 8 spoke with Kelsey Wiggs, Ph.D. candidate at IU Bloomington and lead author of a new study who explains. 

“There is research to suggest that untreated depression does pose risk to children as far as that prenatal exposure,” she said. “But we’re not exactly sure why. It could be for genetic reasons because depression and seizures and epilepsy do have shared genetic risks. This could be related to the depression symptoms themselves, which could suggest that treating the depression would be the best thing to do to mitigate that risk.”

Wiggs and her colleagues plan to continue this research to find the answer.