No abstract

The Cochrane library #1 MeSH descriptor: [Safety] explode all trees #2 Safet* (Word variations have been searched) #3 Side effect* (Word variations have been searched) #4 Undesirable effect* (Word variations have been searched) #5 Toxicit* (Word variations have been searched) #6 Adverse drug reaction* (Word variations have been searched) #7 Adverse drug effect* (Word variations have been searched) #8 Adverse drug outcome* (Word variations have been searched) #9 Adverse drug event* (Word variations have been searched) #10 Tolerab* (Word variations have been searched)

Study selection: Of 38 reports initially identified as being of potential interest, 13 studies met our inclusion criteria: English observational studies that examined the association between gestational antipsychotic use and congenital malformations in children.Data extraction: Data were extracted independently by 2 investigators including the publication year, study site, study period, data source, study design, sample size, medication exposure, exposure period and pregnancy definition, exposure as well as outcome ascertainment, selection of study and comparison group, confounding adjustment, statistical analysis, and method of linkage between mother and children.Risk estimates were pooled using a random-effect model and the I 2 statistic was used to evaluate the degree of heterogeneity.Results: Thirteen studies met our systematic review inclusion criteria. Six studies with a total of 2 515 272 pregnancy episodes were included in our meta-analysis, which provided a pooled adjusted risk ratio of 1.23, 95% confidence interval: 0.96-1.58. The I 2 result showed moderate heterogeneity between studies (I 2 = 35.2%, P = .173). Conclusion:We did not find strong evidence of an association between prenatal exposure to antipsychotic medications and the risk of congenital malformations in children. We recommend further studies investigate this association, focusing on Abbreviations: aRR, adjusted risk ratio; CI, confidence interval; FGA, first-generation antipsychotic; NOS, Newcastle-Ottawa Scale; OR, odds ratio; PS, propensity score; RR, risk ratio; SGA, second-generation antipsychotic.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong disorder. In the UK, risperidone is the only psychotropic medication approved for the management of the behavioural symptoms that may accompany autism. This is a population-based study aimed to provide an evaluation of the changing trend in the incidence and prevalence of ASD and to analyse the pattern of psychotropic medication prescribing in the UK. 20,194 patients with ASD were identified. The prevalence increased 3.3-fold from 0.109 per 100 persons in 2009 to 0.355 per 100 persons in 2016. Approximately one-third of the identified cohort was prescribed at least one psychotropic medication. Although the medications approved to manage the symptoms of ASD are limited, the prescribing of such medications is increasing.