title: Increasing use of atypical antipsychotics and anticonvulsants during pregnancy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To quantify maternal use of atypical antipsychotics, typical antipsychotics, anticonvulsants, and lithium during pregnancy.
  
  
  METHODS
  Tennessee birth and death records were linked to Tennessee Medicaid data to conduct a retrospective cohort study of 296,817 women enrolled in Tennessee Medicaid throughout pregnancy who had a live birth or fetal death from 1985 to 2005.
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the study time period, the adjusted rate of use of any study medication during pregnancy increased from nearly 14 to 31 per 1000 pregnancies (β = 0.08, 95% CI = 0.07, 0.09). Significant increases were reported in use of anticonvulsants alone among mothers with pain and other psychiatric disorders, atypical antipsychotics alone among mothers with bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, unipolar depressive disorders, and other psychiatric disorders, and more than one studied medication for mothers with epilepsy, pain disorders, bipolar disorders, unipolar depressive disorders, and other psychiatric disorders. Significant decreases were reported in use of lithium alone and typical antipsychotics alone for all clinically meaningful diagnosis groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There was a substantial increase in use of atypical antipsychotics alone, anticonvulsants alone, and medications from multiple studied categories among Tennessee Medicaid-insured pregnant women during the study period. Further examination of the maternal and fetal consequences of exposure to these medications during pregnancy is warranted.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37212, USA. richard.a.epstein@vanderbilt.edu
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Epstein
authors.forename: William V
authors.initials: WV
authors.lastname: Bobo
authors.forename: Richard C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Shelton
authors.forename: Patrick G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Arbogast
authors.forename: James A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Morrow
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Rameela
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Chandrasekhar
authors.forename: William O
authors.initials: WO
authors.lastname: Cooper
mesh_terms: D000927:Anticonvulsants / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016208:Databases, Factual / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017723:Drug Utilization Review / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D019983:Guideline Adherence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008484:Medicaid / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D017891:Pharmacoepidemiology; D060735:Pharmacovigilance; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D000927:Anticonvulsants; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents
keywords: anticonvulsants; antipsychotics; fetal effects; lithium; pharmacoepidemiology; pregnancy