In utero exposure to Distilbène *: the risk of psychiatric disorder not increased

The risk of a psychiatric disorder does not appear increased among persons exposed in utero Distilbène * (diethylstilbestrol, DES), according to an epidemiological study commissioned by the INSERM French Agency for the Safety of Health Products ( AFSSAPS).

After somatic consequences, widely recognized, exposure to DES in utero, possible neuropsychiatric impact was also raised in 1999, he recalled in an account of a meeting of the National Pharmacovigilance Committee (NOC) of AFSSAPS, which were presented these results.

Complaints have been filed by families blaming the suicide of their children to drug and an investigation was opened by Judge Marie-Odile Bertella-Geffroy.

The Hhorages (Stop the artificial hormones for pregnancy) association has conducted a statistical study suggesting an excess of psychiatric abuses and a rate four times higher suicide than the general population, children exposed to DES in utero

The study was paid to the investigation file, which also waited for the epidemiological study of Inserm, led by Professor Hélène Verdoux (U657 in Bordeaux).

The last door on the E3N cohort of 100,000 women members of the general Mutual of Education (MGEN), born between 1925 and 1950, followed in 1990 by a self-administered questionnaire every two years.

The 2004 has affected women alive in 2004 who reported taking at least one DES for pregnancy child born alive and the analysis was based on the comparison of members of a sibling born to these women, exposed and not exposed in utero. It thus provides 1,352 women treated with DES and 3127 children.

It appears that the risk of serious psychiatric disorders (odds ratio = 0.8) and the risk of psychiatric disorders broadly defined (odds ratio = 1.02) in adolescence and adulthood, in children exposed in utero DES was not significantly increased compared to their unexposed siblings, after adjustment for age, sex, socio-cultural level, obstetric complications and psychiatric family history.

The study confirms, however, the increased risk of miscarriage in women women who took DES, reaching 40%.

However, the report highlights the limitations of the study, concerning the collection of information by self-administered questionnaire, the lack of information on the duration and dose of hormone therapy, and the lack of precision of the diagnostic nature of psychiatric disorder reported.

It also highlights its strengths, namely its large size, high response rate, the anticipation of the collection of information on hormone exposure in relation to the study, the use of siblings as a control group and age of women at risk, more than 30 years in 90% of cases.

The members of the NOC were unanimous in judging the relevant study and stressed the need for further risk assessment of prenatal exposure to other synthetic hormones.