Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42093913›Full record

ReviewEXCLI journal2026

Paracetamol in pregnancy: Navigating clinical uncertainty and avoiding the communication pitfalls of the "measles, mumps, and rubella" - autism controversy: A narrative review.

Helmi Ben Saad, Chamseddine Barki, Ismail Dergaa, Wissem Dhahbi, Halil Ibrahim Ceylan, Nasr Chalghaf, Abdelfatteh El Omri, Hanene Boussi Rahmouni

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in EXCLI journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Helmi Ben SaadUniversity of Sousse, Faculty of Medicine 'Ibn el Jazzar' of Sousse, Farhat Hached University Hospital, Research Laboratory LR12SP09 'Heart Failure', Sousse, Tunisia.
Chamseddine BarkiResearch Laboratory of Biophysics and Medical Technologies, Higher Institute of Medical Technologies of Tunis, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis 1006, Tunisia.
Ismail DergaaHigh Institute of Sport and Physical Education of Ksar Said, University of Manouba, Manouba 2010, Tunisia.
Wissem DhahbiHigh Institute of Sport and Physical Education of Kef, University of Jendouba, Kef 7100, Tunisia.
Halil Ibrahim CeylanPhysical Education of Sports Teaching Department, Faculty of Sports Sciences, Atatürk University, Erzurum 25240, Türkiye.
Nasr ChalghafHigh Institute of Sport and Physical Education of Gafsa, University of Gafsa, Gafsa 2100, Tunisia.
Abdelfatteh El OmriSurgical Research Section, Department of Surgery, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Hanene Boussi RahmouniResearch Laboratory of Biophysics and Medical Technologies, Higher Institute of Medical Technologies of Tunis, University of Tunis El Manar, Tunis 1006, Tunisia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

On September 22, 2025, the United States government announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would modify paracetamol (acetaminophen) labelling to warn of possible associations with autism, advising pregnant individuals to avoid the medication. This contradicts professional medical consensus and high-quality evidence, replicating communication failures of the 1998 MMR-autism controversy that caused vaccine hesitancy, disease outbreaks, and trust erosion. This narrative review synthesized epidemiological evidence on paracetamol safety in pregnancy, analyzed the September 2025 announcement through the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR)-autism crisis lens, and proposed an evidence-based communication framework. We searched

Indexed as

acetaminophenautism spectrum disorderevidence-based medicinehealth communicationnarrative reviewneurodevelopmental disordersparacetamolpregnancyrisk communicationshared decision-making

Identifiers

PMID42093913
PMCPMC13139739

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.