Depression ‘more likely’ in pregnancy

Depression in pregnancy is more common than after giving birth and is a cause of premature birth, infant death and severe childhood illness, a London conference was told yesterday.

A natural increase in stress hormones during pregnancy can trigger depression and increase the risk of a pre-term birth. Although antenatal depression is hardly recognised by the medical profession, treating it could prevent thousands of premature births a year.

Veronica O’Keane, specialist in prenatal psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, London, said: “Depression is more common during pregnancy than after giving birth. It is a myth that women are somehow protected from depression by their hormones when they are pregnant.”

Dr O’Keane said recent research showed that, on the contrary, there was a natural rise during pregnancy in levels of the stress hormones that could trigger depression in women who were susceptible to mood disorders. Through a complex biochemical process, their condition increased the risk of pre-term birth.

“At least half of postnatal depression starts during pregnancy,” she said, “though lots of women do not present for treatment until after they have given birth.” To make matters worse, Dr O’Keane said, women who had already suffered from clinical depression were usually taken off antidepressant drugs when they became pregnant.

“It is thought wrongly that, if the woman can struggle through the pregnancy without medication, this will be good for the baby,” she said. “I do not think women should discontinue treatment during pregnancy, though some drugs are safer than others and each patient needs an individualised approach,” she told the conference organised by the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College.

A US study, carried out at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, found 68 per cent who discontinued antidepressants during pregnancy relapsed before giving birth, compared with 21 per cent who maintained their medication. The consequences of clinical depression are serious, with babies more likely to be born early and underweight.

Welcome To Iconocast

How to add a URL link from your web site to the Iconocast web sites

Recent News and Articles on the Keywords: web Related to the article below (Last Update: 8/5/2008)

Depression ‘more likely’ in pregnancy

Iconocast Home Page