Predicting Postnatal Depression
September 17, 2009 by Peggy Rowland
Filed under Women's Health
It’s difficult to see into the future, of course. But, when it comes to postnatal depression, prediction can be important for prevention. Around 13% of women worldwide suffer from depression after giving birth.
Spanish researchers have developed a new method to predict 80% of cases of postnatal depression.
Researchers used artificial neuronal networks to help identify various risk factors for postnatal depression: prior psychiatric problems in the family, the extent of social support for the mother and emotional changes during the birth. Another risk factor is a bit more technical: neuroticism and polymorphisms in the serotonin transport gene.
The findings also reveal two protective factors that may reduce the risk of depression after birth: age and career. The older the woman, the less likely she is to experience depression. Also, working during pregnancy seems to reduce the risk as well.
Researchers note that their model needs clinical evaluation and testing on patients by their psychiatrists. For the study, published in Methods of Information in Medicine, researchers studied 1,397 Spanish women who gave birth between December 2003 and October 2004.
(Image via SINC)
