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Evidence Against Maternal Influenza as a Risk Factor for Schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

J.-P. C. J. Selten  and
J. P. J. Slaets
J.-P. C. J. Selten*
Affiliation:
Rosenburg Psychiatric Hospital, PO Box 53019, 2505 AA The Hague, The Netherlands
J. P. J. Slaets
Affiliation:
Leyenburg Hospital, The Hague, The Netherlands
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

We tested the hypothesis that second-trimester exposure to influenza is a risk factor for schizophrenia in the child. The dates of birth of Dutch schizophrenic in-patients were examined for any effect of the 1957 A2 influenza epidemic. Individuals who were in their second trimester of foetal life at the peak of the epidemic were at no greater risk of developing schizophrenia than controls. As the present study has a larger sample size than all previous European studies, and is supported by a large study in the USA, it provides strong evidence against the hypothesis that second-trimester exposure to influenza is a risk factor for schizophrenia.

Type
Short Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 164 , Issue 5 , May 1994 , pp. 674 - 676
Copyright
Copyright © 1994 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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