Depression and Pregnancy

Introduction

General overview of depression can be found in the main article.

Epidemiology and Risk

• The incidence of MDD during pregnancy is 7.5%, while period prevalence is 12.7%.
• Depression during pregnancy is associated with increased risk of pre-term birth and low birth-weight (Meta-analysis, Grote 2010)
• Women treated with SSRI's have 2-3x greater risk for preterm birth and delivering low-birth-weight infants, compared to women not treated with SSRIs.
• Despite in-utero SSRI exposure, there was no effect in infant growth at 12-mo in a prospective observational study

References

[1] Groto NK, et.al. A meta-analysis of depression during pregnancy and the risk of preterm birth, low birth weight, and intrauterine growth restriction. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2010 Oct;67(10):1012-24 [2] Wisner KL, et.al. Does Fetal Exposure to SSRIs or Maternal Depression Impact Infant Growth? Am J Psychiatry. 2013 May 1;170(5):485-93.