Neurobehavioural outcome in 6–18 year old children after trauma in pregnancy: Case–control study

Background: Maternal trauma complicates pregnancy in approximately 7%. Long-term development of children exposed to maternal trauma is unknown. Aim: To determine neurobehavioural outcome of children (6–18 years) born after maternal trauma in pregnancy compared to a matched control group. Study design: Case-control study performed at a tertiary medical centre. Subjects: All consecutive children born after maternal hospitalization for trauma during pregnancy between 1995 and 2005. Controls were children born at the same hospital and period after an uneventful pregnancy. Outcome measures: Trauma type and severity (Injury Severity Score, ≥9: severe); information from medical files at admission (cases). All mothers filled out two questionnaires about the infant; 1. concerning health, motor development and educational level, 2. concerning behavioural development through the validated Dutch version of the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL). Results: Questionnaires were returned by 34 cases and 28 controls. The traumas concerned mainly motor vehicle accidents and falls, and 3/34 had severe injuries. No differences in health, motor development, educational level and CBCL was found between the cases and controls, except for more hospitalization in the cases (p = 0.009). Conclusion: Long-term follow-up of a limited population of children 6–18 years after exposure of mainly non-severe trauma before birth is similar to a control population except for unexplained more hospitalization in the cases.