{"id":22120,"date":"2025-07-25T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-25T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ices.on.ca\/?post_type=news_release&#038;p=22120"},"modified":"2025-07-29T13:14:06","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T17:14:06","slug":"surrogates-more-likely-to-be-diagnosed-with-mental-illness-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"news_release","link":"https:\/\/www.ices.on.ca\/fr\/news-releases\/surrogates-more-likely-to-be-diagnosed-with-mental-illness-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"Surrogates more likely to be diagnosed with mental illness, study finds\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Montreal, QC, July 25, 2025<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\"> \u2013 People who are gestational carriers (or \u201csurrogates\u201d) appear more likely to be diagnosed with a new mental illness during and after pregnancy, according to new research from <\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">ICES, McGill University<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">, and the <\/span><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">As the number of births by surrogacy increases, this is the first large study using Ontario-based health data to explore the mental health challenges faced by some surrogates.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Despite <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.asrm.org\/practice-guidance\/practice-committee-documents\/recommendations-for-practices-using-gestational-carriers-a-committee-opinion-2022\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">guidelines<\/span><\/a><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> requiring mental health screening, the researchers found that nearly 1 in 5 gestational carriers had a prior mental illness diagnosis before pregnancy\u2014including some with serious conditions that may have made them ineligible to carry a pregnancy for someone else.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cOur findings underscore the importance of adequate screening and counselling of potential gestational carriers before pregnancy about the possibility of a new-onset mental illness, or exacerbation of a prior mental-illness during or after pregnancy,\u201d says <\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">lead author Dr. Maria Velez, an adjunct scientist at ICES, associate professor at McGill University, and scientist at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"none\">The study, published in <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/10.1001\/jamanetworkopen.2025.23428?utm_source=For_The_Media&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=ftm_links&amp;utm_term=072525\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i><span data-contrast=\"none\">JAMA Network Open<\/span><\/i><\/a><span data-contrast=\"none\">, <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">included 767,406 births at more than 20 week\u2019s gestation in Ontario, Canada between 2012 and 2021 among women without known mental illness before pregnancy. Comparison groups included 97.6% (748,732) who were conceived without assistance, 2.3% (17,916) by IVF and 0.1% (758) using gestational carriers.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Gestational carriers were more likely to have previously given birth, resided in a lower-income area, and had higher rates of obesity and chronic hypertension.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Adequate mental health support needed<\/span><\/b><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The incidence rate per 100 person-years of new-onset mental illness was 5.2 among non-gestational carriers with unassisted conception, 5.0 among non-gestational carriers who conceived by IVF, and 6.9 among gestational carriers.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The findings were even more pronounced for mental illness that was newly diagnosed through an emergency department encounter or a hospitalization, compared to an outpatient mental illness diagnosis.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">\u201cUnfortunately, fewer than half of those who visit the emergency room for mental health concerns after childbirth receive timely follow-up care which leaves many, especially gestational carriers, at risk during a vulnerable period,\u201d says Velez.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The authors say that they hope this study will inform future guidelines that ensure adequate mental health support for gestational carriers during and after pregnancy.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:257}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">\u202f<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\"><br \/>\n<\/span><span data-contrast=\"none\">Misty Pratt<\/span><br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"none\">Senior Communications Associate, ICES<\/span><br \/>\n<a href=\"mailto:Media@ices.on.ca\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">Media@ices.on.ca<\/span><\/a><br \/>\n<span data-contrast=\"none\">343-961-6982<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"none\">ICES\u202f<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"none\">is an independent, not-for-profit research and analytics institute that uses population-based health information to produce knowledge on a broad range of healthcare issues. ICES leads cutting-edge studies and analyses evaluating healthcare policy, delivery, and population outcomes. Our knowledge is highly regarded in Canada and abroad and is widely used by government, hospitals, planners, and practitioners to make decisions about healthcare delivery and to develop policy. For the latest ICES news, follow us on BlueSky and LinkedIn: @ICESOntario<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre<\/span><\/b><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> (The Institute) is a world-renowned biomedical and healthcare research centre. Affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of McGill University, The Institute is the research arm of the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) \u2013 an academic health centre located in Montreal, Canada, that has a mandate to provide complex care to its community. The Institute supports over 700 researchers and close to 1,400 research trainees devoted to a broad spectrum of fundamental, clinical and health outcomes research at the Glen and the Montreal General Hospital sites of the MUHC. Its research facilities, including the Centre for Translational Biology, the Centre for Innovative Medicine and the Centre for Outcomes Research and Evaluation, offer a dynamic multidisciplinary environment that fosters collaboration and leverages discovery aimed at advancing precision health throughout the life course. <\/span><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Institute is supported in part by the Fonds de recherche du Qu\u00e9bec (FRQ). <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rimuhc.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span data-contrast=\"none\">rimuhc.ca<\/span><\/a><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;134233117&quot;:false,&quot;134233118&quot;:false,&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335557856&quot;:16777215,&quot;335559738&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:240,&quot;335559740&quot;:240}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Montreal, QC, July 25, 2025 \u2013 People who are gestational carriers (or \u201csurrogates\u201d) appear more likely to be diagnosed with a new mental illness during and after pregnancy, according to new research from ICES, McGill University, and the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre.\u00a0 As the number of births by surrogacy increases, this [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"template":"","migration-helper-automated":[],"migration-manual":[],"topic":[26,34],"class_list":["post-22120","news_release","type-news_release","status-publish","hentry","topic-maternity-and-neonatal-care","topic-mental-health-and-addictions"],"acf":{"infographic":[22153],"journal_article":[22161],"research_report":"","atlas":"","research_program":[6740],"site":[6736],"ices_scientist":"","announce_or_event":"","video":"","iitn_type":"Article","iitn_title":"Surrogates at greater risk of new mental illness than women carrying own babies, study finds","iitn_short_title":"","iitn_source_link_url":"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/lifeandstyle\/2025\/jul\/25\/surrogates-gestational-carriers-risk-mental-illness-pregnancy-canada","iitn_source_link_text":"","sitecore_item_id":"","sitecore_item_name":"","sitecore_field_values":"","previous_url":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>ICES | Surrogates more likely to be diagnosed with mental illness, study finds\u00a0<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Montreal, QC, July 25, 2025 \u2013 People who are gestational carriers (or \u201csurrogates\u201d) appear more likely to be diagnosed with a new mental illness during\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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