(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- It’s not just postpartum depression women need to
worry about -- they should also watch for depression before and during
pregnancy.
A new Kaiser Permanente study reveals more than one-in-seven women are depressed
at some time during the nine months before they become pregnant, during
pregnancy, or during the nine months after they give birth. Nearly three-fourths
of women who have postpartum depression were also depressed before they were
pregnant.
“These findings show we need to pay more attention to depression before
pregnancy,” co-author Evelyn Whitlock, M.D., MPH, from Kaiser Permanente Center
for Health Research, was quoted as saying. “While postpartum depression clearly
is an important concern, we also need to consider the mental health and
treatment needs of the many women who are depressed right before or during their
pregnancies.”
Dr. Whitlock added depression needs to be managed as a chronic condition in
women of childbearing age instead of as a temporary condition triggered or
relieved by getting pregnant or giving birth. Also, women with a history of
depression should be closely monitored for symptoms during prenatal and
postpartum care.
The study also shows nearly three-fourths of depressed women received an
antidepressant before, during or after pregnancy. Selective serotonin reuptake
inhibitors (SSRIs) were the most commonly prescribed antidepressants.
SOURCE: The American Journal of Psychiatry, 2007;164:1515-1520
