Treated Infections Tied to Later Risk for Mental Disorders in Children and Adolescents

Severe infections have been linked to elevated risks for mental disorders. Beyond the direct impact of pathogens to the brain, other possible mechanisms include immune activation and adverse effects of inflammation. To learn more, investigators used Danish national registry data to identify 1,098,930 individuals ages 1 to 18 (birthyears, 1995–2012).

During a mean follow-up of 10 years, 42,462 persons had a hospitalization for any mental disorder, and 56,847 individuals filled at least one prescription for a psychotropic medication. In analyses controlling for comorbidities, age, sex, and parental education and mental disorders, infections requiring hospitalizations were associated with a nearly 84% greater risk for hospitalization for any me…