Mood Disorders Associated with Childbearing

Written by: Petros Skapinakis, MD, MPH, PhD, lecturer of Psychiatry in the University of Ioannina Medical School, Greece. Eva Gerasi, postgraduate student in the Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital of Ioannina, Greece.

First version: 22 Jul 2008. Latest revision: 30 Jul 2008.

Question:

 What kind of mood disorders happen during/after pregnancy?

Answer:

Psychiatric disorders associated with childbearing have been recognized for centuries and are traditionally divided into three categories which reflect severity: postpartum or maternity blues, postpartum depression (PPD) and postpartum or puerperal psychosis.

Epidemiological surveys have estimated that more than 80% of the women of reproductive age experience some depressive mood symptoms attributed to either the antepartum or postpartum period. The American Psychiatric Association has recently acknowledged that there is a specific link between mood disorders and childbearing, and that psychiatric disorders triggered by pregnancy or birth have unique characteristics.

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