Risk of severe mood and anxiety disorders in the adult children of parents with alcohol use disorder: a nationwide cohort study

Abstract

Background Growing up with parental alcohol use disorder (AUD) is a risk factor for psychiatric disorders. This study investigated the risk of mood disorders and of anxiety disorders in the adult children of parents with AUD, adjusted for sociodemographic factors. Methods Individual-level register data on the total population were linked to follow children of parents with AUD from 1973 to 2018 to assess their risk of mood disorders and of anxiety disorders. AUD, mood disorders and anxiety disorders were defined with International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems codes from the National Patient Register. HRs of outcomes were calculated with Cox regression. Model 1 was adjusted for the child’s sex, parental education and death of a parent. Model 2 was adjusted for those factors and parental diagnosis of mood or anxiety disorder. Results Those with ≥1 parent with AUD (99 723 of 2 421 479 children) had a higher risk of mood disorder and of anxiety disorder than those whose parents did not have AUD (HR mood 2.32, 95% CI 2.26 to 2.39; HR anxiety 2.66, 95% CI 2.60 to 2.72). The risk remained elevated after adjustment for sociodemographic factors and parental psychiatric diagnosis (HR mood 1.67, 95% CI 1.63 to 1.72; HR anxiety 1.74, 95% CI 1.69 to 1.78). The highest risks were associated with AUD in both parents, followed by AUD in mothers and then in fathers. Conclusion Adult children of parents with AUD have a raised risk of mood and anxiety disorders even after adjustment for sociodemographic factors and parental mood or anxiety disorder. These population-level findings can inform future policies and interventions. Data may be obtained from a third party and are not publicly available. Because of current data protection legislation, the study data cannot be publicly shared. For access to similar study data, contact Statistics Sweden and the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, the public authorities that hold the data.