Postpartum drug could be ‘game changer’ for women

image credit: theconversation.com

Brexanolone injection works differently than existing antidepressant medications, and if approved by the US Food and Drug Administration later this year, will be the first new class of antidepressants in decades, and the first drug specifically indicated for PPD.

“With current antidepressant SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) it could take four to six weeks to get a treatment response. In the brexanolone trials, we saw patients starting to feel better within days,” says Samantha Meltzer-Brody, director of the perinatal psychiatry program at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine and the trial’s academic principal investigator.

Time is essential

Time is especially crucial for new mothers experiencing postpartum depression because the weeks and months following birth are a critical period for mother-infant bonding, says coauthor David Rubinow, chair of the psychiatry department.

Common symptoms of PPD—a mood disorder in women that fluctuations in reproductive hormones can trigger—include low mood, feeling overwhelmed, anxious and ruminating thoughts, potential withdrawal from the baby and her family, and suicidal thoughts in the most severe cases.

1 in 20 younger women suffers major depression

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Depression is a big problem in women during and after pregnancy, but it's also a concern throughout the reproductive years.

Now, new research reports that nearly 5 percent of women between the ages of 20 and 44 have struggled with major depression.

And another 4 percent of women in that age group have experienced minor depression.

But neither group is getting adequate care for the condition. Less than one third of women with major depression were being treated with antidepressants. For those with minor depression, only 20 percent had been given an antidepressant.

"Depression impacts women of childbearing years who aren't pregnant," said study senior author Dr. Alexander Butwick. He's an associate professor of anesthesiology, perioperative and pain medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine in California.

"By improving awareness of depression in the reproductive years, we may be able to better optimize care before a woman gets pregnant. We can get appropriate counseling and treatment in place before pregnancy, which may help mitigate depression during pregnancy," Butwick said.

Nearly 13 percent of women experience major depression during pregnancy, according to the researchers. Depression during pregnancy has been linked to several serious outcomes, including the mother's self-harm or suicide, diminished growth in the baby, early delivery and inadequate mother-child bonding.

More than half of women who have depression during pregnancy also had depression before pregnancy, the researchers noted. So getting a treatment plan in place beforehand would be ideal.

Read more: 

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-03-younger-women-major-depression.html

Mothers with postnatal depression reluctant to have more than two children

via healthxchange.com.sg

Source: University of Kent | Summary: Mothers who have postnatal depression are unlikely to have more than two children according to research carried out by evolutionary anthropologists. Until now very little has been known about how women's future fertility is impacted by the experience of postnatal depression.

"Mothers who have postnatal depression are unlikely to have more than two children according to research carried out by evolutionary anthropologists the University of Kent and published by Evolution, Medicine and Public Health.

Until now very little has been known about how women's future fertility is impacted by the experience of postnatal depression. A research team from Kent's School of Anthropology and Conservation collected data on the complete reproductive histories of over 300 women to measure the effect postnatal depression had on their decision to have more children. The mothers were all born in the early to mid-20th century and the majority were based in industrialised countries while raising their children.

The team concluded that postnatal depression, particularly when the first child is born, leads to lowered fertility levels. Experiencing higher levels of emotional distress in her first postnatal period decreased a woman's likelihood of having a third child, though did not affect whether she had a second..."

Read more here:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/03/160315090249.htm