Antidepressants during Pregnancy

Posted by Brenda Lane Sep 5, 2007

A recent study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry has shown that the use of antidepressants during pregnancy is associated with an increase in preterm birth and a lower gestational age at birth.

The study included 90 pregnant women that were divided into three groups: 49 women had major depressive disorder and were taking antidepressants for more than 50% of their pregnancy; 22 women had major depressive disorder and were treated either briefly or not treated and the remaining 19 were a healthy group of pregnant mothers for comparison.

The average fetal age was 38.5 weeks, 39.4 weeks and 39.7 weeks from all three above groups. The rate of pre-term birth and rates of admission to the NICU were both significantly higher in the group treated with antidepressants.

Researchers found that the presence of depression alone did not increase the risks of preterm birth or decrease in fetal age at birth. "This result was surprising to us, as we had anticipated that depression and anxiety during pregnancy would be associated with an increased risk of preterm birth," researchers reported.

They also found that both the treated and untreated groups of mothers reported similar degrees of depression and anxiety during pregnancy.

Clearly there is much about depression and pregnancy that we do not know. However, it is crucial for all expectant mothers to know that taking antidepressants for long periods of time during pregnancy does put them at a higher risk for the above complications.

For more information about postpartum depression, visit our series.

Brenda