Maternal Infection during Pregnancy and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

We aimed to determine the association between maternal infections during pregnancy with risk of Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children.

A systematic literature search was performed utilizing the online databases PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Sciences up to July 2020. Random-effects meta-analyses were applied to estimate pooled relative risk (RR). Heterogeneity, study quality and publication bias were assessed through I2 value, Newcastle–Ottawa scale (NOS) and Egger's test, respectively.

Thirteen articles involving 1401904 mother-child pairs were included. The result of meta-analysis showed that the risk of ADHD increased by 30% among children whose mothers took any infections during pregnancy (pooled RR=1.30, 95% CI: 1.14-1.49; I2=85.5, P<0.001). Overall, the included studies were good in quality and no publication bias was found (P=0.23, Egger’s test).

Maternal infections during pregnancy might be associated with an increased risk of ADHD in children.