What does this research mean for the field?

Paternal use of valproate within the 90 days before conception is not associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.CONFIRMATORY. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to investigate whether fathers' use of valproate before conception increases the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in their children.

February 27, 2026

Valproate Use by Fathers and Risk of Neurodevelopmental Disorders in Children

Key Points

This research aims to investigate whether fathers' use of valproate before conception increases the risk of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) in their children.
Analyzed Norwegian and Taiwanese cohorts
Assessed paternal valproate use within 90 days before conception
Adjusted for confounding variables
Found no association between paternal valproate use and increased risk of NDDs
Results consistent across different cohorts

Abstract

Paternal use of valproate within the 90 days before conception was not associated with an increased risk of NDDs in offspring after adjustment for confounding in Norwegian and Taiwanese cohorts. (Funded by the Research Council of Norway and the National Science and Technology Council of Taiwan.).

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Cite This Study

Meng et al. (Tue,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69a1344fed1d949a99abe06e https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1056/evidoa2500254

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