Bipolar Depression: Pregnancy, Postpartum, and Lactation

Post-partum depression: From clinical understanding to preclinical assessments

Post-partum depression (PPD) with varying clinical manifestations affecting new parents remains underdiagnosed and poorly treated. This minireview revisits the pharmacotherapy, and relevant etiological basis, capable of advancing preclinical research frameworks. Maternal tasks accompanied by numerous behavioral readouts demand modeling different paradigms that reflect the complex and heterogenous nature of PPD. Hence, effective PPD-like characterization in animals towards the discovery of pharmacological intervention demands research that deepens our understanding of the roles of hormonal and non-hormonal components and mediators of this psychiatric disorder.

Effectiveness of an app-based cognitive behavioral therapy program for postpartum depression in primary care: A randomized controlled trial

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to examine the effect of mobile phone applications (App) based cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on postpartum depression.

METHOD

A non-blinded parallel-group randomized controlled trial was conducted. The study population consisted of women attended to three health care centers in Kerman, Iran. Participants were recruited between September and November 2018, and randomized 1:1 to either the intervention group (mobile application access) or control group (no mobile application access). All participants completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at the baseline and 2 months after baseline. Data were analyzed using inferential statistics including chi-square, independent sample t-test, paired t-test and linear regression.

RESULTS

A total of 75 women with an average age of 27 years participated in this study. Before the intervention, there was no statistically significant difference between the EPDS score between the two groups (p > 0.001). However, in the intervention group, the average EPDS score after intervention was 8.18 and in the control group was 15.05, which was statistically significant (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

These findings provide proof that providing a CBT program using a mobile application can lead to clinically important improvements in outcomes for mothers who suffer from postpartum depression.

Risk of recurrence of mood disorders during pregnancy and the impact of medication: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Mood disorders can be difficult to treat during pregnancy. There is still lack of evidence whether pregnancy influences their natural course and whether continuation of pharmacotherapy, despite potential risks for the unborn child, is beneficial in preventing recurrence of mood episodes during pregnancy.

METHODS

Systematic review conducted according to the PRISMA guidelines, searching Pubmed, PsycINFO, Embase and Cochrane databases up till January 9th, 2018. Recurrence rates and various measures of risk were calculated.

RESULTS

Out of 1387 articles from an initial search 22 studies met the inclusion criteria. Included studies reported a wide variation in the recurrence rate of bipolar disorder and major depressive disorder during pregnancy (BD: mean = 19%, range = 4%-73%; MDD: mean = 8%, range = 1%-75%). Observational data showed a relative risk reduction of maintenance therapy during pregnancy of 66% in women with BD and 54% for women with MDD, a significant difference (95% CI 9.4-14.6; p < 0.001).

LIMITATIONS

heterogeneous samples, study designs, and reported outcomes in included studies.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite the importance of the topic there is a paucity of evidence on recurrence rates of mood episodes during pregnancy among women with MDD or BD. Unlike the impact of the postpartum period, it is still uncertain whether the course of mood disorders is influenced by pregnancy. Non-randomized studies show that maintenance pharmacotherapy during pregnancy in women with mood disorders significantly (p < 0.01) reduces the risk of recurrence.

Is cognitive behavioral therapy a better choice for women with postnatal depression? A systematic review and meta-analysis

The present study evaluated the combined effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for postnatal depression. A systematic search was conducted across databases including PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane library to identify the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that assessing CBT versus control for postnatal depression until March 2017. Data was extracted by two reviewers, independently. The Review Manager 5.3 and Stata 11.0 were used to calculate the synthesized effect of CBT on depression, and anxiety. A total of 20 RCTs involving 3623 participants were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that CBT was associated with a better Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) than control in short-term (mean difference = -2.86, 95% CI: -4.41--1.31; P<0.05) and long-term (mean difference = -1.68, 95% CI: -1.81-1.56; P<0.05). CBT also improved short-term (mean difference = -6.30, 95% CI: -11.32--1.28; P<0.05) and long-term (mean difference = -4.31, 95% CI: -6.92--1.70; P<0.05) Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). Subgroup analysis based on intervention types showed that in-home and telephone-based therapy exhibited significant reductions in EPDS scores (P<0.05 for all). CBT significantly improved the short-term [odds ratio (OR) = 6.57, 95% CI: 1.84-23.48; P<0.05] and long-term (OR = 2.00, 95% CI: 1.61-2.48; P<0.05) depressive symptomatology as compared to control. CBT also reduced the score of Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS), though without significance. In conclusion, CBT effectively improved the symptoms and progression of postnatal depression.

The role of tryptophan metabolism in postpartum depression

The Postpartum depression (PPD) is the most common postpartum psychiatric disorder, afflicting approximately 10%-20% of new mothers. Clinical symptoms of the PPD include depressive disorder, agitation, insomnia, anxiety and confusion, resulting in an increase in suicidal tendencies, thereby having significant impacts on the puerpera, newborn and their family. A growing body of data indicate a role for alterations in tryptophan metabolism in the PPD. The metabolism of tryptophan produces an array of crucial factors that can differentially regulate key physiological processes linked to the PPD. Importantly, an increase in stress hormones and immune-inflammatory activity drives tryptophan to the production of neuroregulatory kynurenine pathway products and away from the serotonin and melatonin pathways. This links the PPD to other disorders of depressed mood, which are classically associated with decreased serotonin and melatonin, coupled to increases in kynurenine pathway products. Several kynurenine pathway products, such as kynurenic acid and quinolinic acid, can have neuroregulatory effects, with consequences pathological underpinnings of the PPD. The current article reviews the role of alterations in tryptophan metabolism in the PPD.

Pregnancy and bipolar disorder: the risk of recurrence when discontinuing treatment with mood stabilisers: a systematic review

OBJECTIVE

Bipolar disorder in pregnancy may be difficult to treat. The dilemma is whether the women should continue medication throughout pregnancy, and maybe accept a minor risk to harm their unborn child, or discontinue medication and increase the risk of recurrence, which can lead to maternal morbidity, thereby endangering themselves and their foetus. Design and methods In September 2016, three electronic search databases; PubMed, Scopus and PsycInfo, were used searching for clinical trials concerning this question. Eight clinical trials concerning risk of recurrence after discontinuation of medication in pregnancy were included.

RESULTS

There is no consensus concerning the risk of discontinuation of medication during pregnancy among bipolar women. The evidence from the trials included underscore that there seem to be a group of pregnant women who are stable despite they are not receiving mood stabilisers during pregnancy. Besides, there is a group of more severe and more unstable bipolar disorders that seem to benefit of a more close monitoring, support and prophylactic medication during pregnancy and postpartum period to prevent recurrence.

CONCLUSION

For the more stable bipolar women we recommend a well planned and more slowly discontinuation of medication before pregnancy. For the unplanned pregnancies it is important to consider the possibility of a more slowly discontinuation. For the more severe conditions of bipolar disorder, it is important to secure a close monitoring of medication. As the risk of postpartum relapse is high, medication may be started soon after delivery.