Psychiatric diagnoses of children affected by their parents’ traumatic brain injury: the 1987 Finnish Birth Cohort study

ABSTRACT

Objective: To investigate whether parental TBI increases the overall risk for psychiatric disorders and the risk for specific psychiatric diagnoses in the children affected by parental TBI.

Methods: The 1987 Finnish Birth Cohort (n = 59 476) were followed up through national registers from birth to the end of 2008. The diagnoses of cohort members and their parents were obtained from the Care Register of Health Care, provided by the National Institute of Health and Welfare.

Results: During the 21-year follow-up, the likelihood for psychiatric diagnoses being assessed in psychiatric care was significantly increased in males with any mental disorder (odds ratio (OR) = 1.43), substance-use-related disorders (OR = 1.71) and behavioural and emotional disorders (OR = 1.75), and in females with disorders of psychological development (OR = 1.85).

Conclusions: Children affected by parental TBI are at increased risk for psychiatric disorders: males for externalizing disorders and females for developmental disorders. Observed gender interactions in the association between parental TBI and the psychiatric disorders of children warrant further study.

KEYWORDS:

• Children
• psychiatric diagnoses
• mental health
• parental TBI
• offspring
• traumatic brain injury

Declaration of interest

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. “This work was supported by National Institute for Health and Welfare, Finland; Juho Vainio Foundation [201610329]; Finnish Cultural Foundation [00160427]; The Academy of Finland [268336, 288960]; The Academy of Finland funded PSYCOHORTS consortium; The Alma and K. A. Snellman Foundation, Oulu, Finland.

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