(RxWiki News) With her hormones fluctuating, her body expanding and her responsibilities increasing, many moms experience bouts of depression both before and after childbirth.
Yet more moms are accepting treatment for depression and feeling better as a result.
Since depression during pregnancy can negatively impact infancy and childhood outcomes, more healthcare practitioners are stepping in early to provide treatment to pre- and post-natal mothers.
"Talk to your doctor about treatments for depression."
From 2002-2009, the Des Moines Healthy Start Project evaluated a total of 1,902 women for depression as part of new requirements by the U.S. Health Resource and Services Administration.
What evaluators found was that of the women surveyed, 573 were rated as having elevated levels of depression and were not currently receiving treatment. Of those women, 64% accepted a referral for treatment and 47% actually received treatment for their depression.
Fortunately, depression significantly decreased for the 47 % of women who received treatment. The study showed that the federal screening program was effective, and suggested that more work should be done to assess the outcomes of these programs.
This study was sponsored by the American Psychiatric Association and was published by Psychiatric Services in 2012. No conflicts in funding were presented.
