Collaborative ECHO Cohort research led by Lisa Kurth, PhD of the University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus investigates the potential influence of maternal exposure to synthetic oxytocin during childbirth—and the contribution of maternal obesity—on neurodevelopmental outcomes in children. Synthetic oxytocin (e.g., Pitocin, Syntocinon) is a drug commonly used to assist women during childbirth by stimulating uterine contractions.
The researchers examined data from over 12,000 mother-child pairs to look at possible associations between maternal exposure to synthetic oxytocin, maternal pre-pregnancy body mass index (BMI), and childhood ADHD and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The results of this study found no significant correlation between synthetic oxytocin exposure and the risk of ADHD and ASD in children. However, an unexpected finding in this study was that synthetic oxytocin exposure was associated with a decreased childhood risk of ADHD in children born to mothers with pre-pregnancy obesity. Additionally, mothers with pre-pregnancy obesity demonstrated a modest trend toward labor intervention with synthetic oxytocin. This research, titled “Intrapartum Exposure to Synthetic Oxytocin, Maternal BMI and Neurodevelopmental Outcomes in Children within the ECHO Consortium,” is published in the Journal of Neurodevelopmental Disorders.
Previous studies on the association between synthetic oxytocin and children’s risk of ADHD and ASD have been decidedly mixed, and the potential impact of the mother’s pre-pregnancy BMI on this association has, until now, not yet been examined. This study analyzed data from participating mothers, 48% of whom were exposed to synthetic oxytocin during childbirth, and their children from ECHO Cohort research sites across the U.S.
Although no significant correlation was found between synthetic oxytocin-assisted childbirth and neurodevelopmental outcomes in children, future research may further unravel the effects of childbirth factors such as synthetic oxytocin dosage, maternal labor duration, maternal gestational obesity and Caesarean delivery rationale, indicators of newborn health (e.g., initial Apgar score, meconium stain, newborn birthweight), and maternal BMI at time of delivery on infant well-being in relationship to child neurodevelopmental outcomes. Important next steps include analysis of biospecimens (placental tissue and cord blood) aimed at understanding the specific mechanism(s) of action involved in synthetic oxytocin exposure.
“Casting a wider net and including additional factors will allow future studies to more precisely examine the effects of important perinatal factors, including environmental exposures, and effect modifiers, such as maternal obesity, on child neurodevelopmental outcomes,” said Dr. Kurth.