TY - JOUR PY - 2020// TI - Childbearing and mortality among women with personality disorders: nationwide registered-based cohort study JO - BJPsych open A1 - Kouppis, Efthymios A1 - Björkenstam, Charlotte A1 - Gerdin, Bengt A1 - Ekselius, Lisa A1 - Björkenstam, Emma SP - e95 EP - e95 VL - 6 IS - 5 N2 - BACKGROUND: People with a personality disorder have a higher mortality and reduced life expectancy than the general population. Childbearing is thought to have a protective effect on morbidity and mortality. Yet, there are no studies on whether childbearing is related to a lower mortality among women with personality disorder. AIMS: This study examined associations between childbearing and mortality among women with personality disorder. Our hypothesis was that parity would be associated with lower mortality. METHOD: This register-based cohort study included 27 412 women treated for personality disorder in in-patient or specialised out-patient care between 1990 and 2015. We used nationwide population-based registers to obtain information on sociodemographics, child delivery, healthcare use and mortality. Mortality risk estimates were calculated as hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CIs using Cox regression. Adjustments were made for year of birth, educational level, age at diagnosis, comorbidity and severity of personality disorder. RESULTS: Nulliparous women had a nearly twofold increased mortality risk (adjusted HR = 1.78, 95% CI 1.50-2.12) compared with parous women and over twofold mortality risk (adjusted HR = 2.29, 95% CI 1.72-3.04) compared with those giving birth after their first personality disorder diagnosis. Those giving birth before their first personality disorder diagnosis had a 1.5-fold higher risk of mortality than those giving birth after their first personality disorder diagnosis (adjusted HR = 1.48, 95% CI 1.06-2.07). There was a threefold risk of suicide in nulliparous women compared with those giving birth after their first personality disorder diagnosis (adjusted HR = 2.90, 95% CI 1.97-4.26). CONCLUSIONS: Childbearing history should be an integral part of the clinical evaluation of women with personality disorder.
Language: en
LA - en SN - 2056-4724 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1192/bjo.2020.77 ID - ref1 ER -