Psychiatric disorders in low birthweight young adults. Prevalence and association with assessments at 11 years

Objective: To compare mental health of 136 young adults without neurosensory handicaps born with low birthweight (LBW, birthweight less than 2,000 g) with 132 adults with normal birthweight (NBW).

Method: A cohort of moderate LBW and NBW young adults were assessed with the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) at 19 years and the Children Assessment Schedule (CAS) at 11 years of age.

Results: At 19 years of age, 44 out of 136 (32%) LBW young adults were diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder compared to 10% NBW (OR: 2.8; 95% CI: 1.1, 4.5, P=0.02). Among the LBW young adults, affective-, anxiety-, ADHD- and antisocial personality disorders were most common, and nine subjects (20%) had more than one diagnosis. Of 97 LBW subjects examined both at 11 and 19 years of age, 54 (56%) were mentally healthy though out adolescence. This was half as many as for controls (OR: 0.6; 95% CI: 0.3 to 0.9).

Conclusion: Moderate LBW was associated with an increased risk of psychiatric disorders in young adulthood. Only half of LBW young adults stayed healthy throughout adolescence.