Scientists find marker for post-partum depression

June 25, 2002

Last Updated: 2002-06-24 17:00:29 -0400 (Reuters Health)

By Woodman

LONDON (Reuters Health) - Scientists said Monday they have found a

biological marker that can spot pregnant women at risk of depression after

childbirth.

Up to 15% of women are believed to suffer from post-childbirth depression,

which is more serious than the common " baby blues, " so the team believes

that having a reliable early warning test would be helpful.

Professor Victor Pop of the University of Tilburg in the Netherlands said a

study showed that women with certain thyroid antibodies during pregnancy

were nearly three times more likely to become depressed after childbirth.

The presence of the thyroid peroxidase antibodies also indicated an

autoimmune thyroid disorder, but the affected brain receptors were similar

to those involved in depression, Pop said.

The study, due to be presented at the annual meeting of the Royal College of

Psychiatrists in Cardiff, Wales, Tuesday, involved 310 women visited when

they were 12 and 32 weeks pregnant and at 4, 12, 20, 28 and 36 weeks after

birth. Antibody testing was performed and depression assessed at every

visit.

Data on 291 women available for analysis showed that 41 (14.1%) had the

antibodies in their blood on one or more occasions while 117 (40.1%) had

depression at one or more visits after childbirth.

The authors found the antibody was independently related to depression at 12

weeks during pregnancy and 4 and 12 weeks after childbirth.

Even after excluding 51 women who had depression in earlier life, the

presence of the antibody in early pregnancy was associated with 2.9 times

the risk of depression after childbirth.

The researchers said that while the antibody test was not a diagnostic tool

for detecting depression, it could help doctors identify women at risk of

depression as part of routine screening in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

They said a major problem with depression was that many patients never seek

help, and even when they do the diagnosis is missed in half of all cases.

Testing could also be useful because the presence of the antibody is linked

to an increased risk of thyroid dysfunction. The babies of women who had the

antibody during pregnancy were also at higher risk of impaired development.

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