Antidepressant use in pregnancy and persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN): A systematic review

An association between PPHN and antidepressant use in pregnancy has been reported. We sought to examine this relationship. A review of the literature was performed, to evaluate this association. Six published studies fulfilled our criteria for inclusion, with only three studies large enough to have the power to detect an association. There appears to be a small but significantly, increased risk of late pregnancy SSRI exposure associated with PPHN in one case–control study; OR 5.1 (95% CI, 1.9–13.3) and two large cohort studies; RR 2.56; (95% CI, 1.17–4.85) and OR 2.1 (95% CI, 1.5–3.0) The other three studies did not find an association. the absolute risk cannot be determined, but it is very small, probably less than 1%. If a pregnant woman requires pharmacological treatment, this information does not support discontinuation or lowering the dose of the antidepressant.