Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C.

Women who are pregnant or considering pregnancy should closely consider their treatment options for depression in light of the limited reproductive safety information available, says a new report published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG). The report , featured in a recent post on Brain Blogger, evaluates and summarizes the risks associated with depression and antidepressant use during pregnancy, and offers guidelines to help patients make decisions about their treatment.

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The B vitamin folic acid has long been touted for its ability to reduce the occurrence of neural tube birth defects such as spina bifida and anencephaly when taken by the mother before and during pregnancy. Now it is being credited for possibly reducing babies’ risk for heart defects, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

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News of frustrating and sometimes serious side effects to antidepressants can be enough to motivate one to wean oneself off the medication. New reports show SSRIs have been linked to suicidal thoughts, a Parkinsons-like condition known as Tardive Dyskinesia, and serious birth defects in infants born to women who took SSRIs during pregnancy. But coming off antidepressants is not always easy and if done improperly can cause uncomfortable withdrawal effects, also known as SSRI discontinuation syndrome.

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There are several factors a woman should consider before trying to conceive, according to the March of Dimes, a voluntary health organization whose mission is to improve the health of babies by preventing birth defects and infant mortality.

One of the most important is to see your health care provider before getting pregnant so that she can evaluate your health and identify any health or lifestyle risks that may affect your pregnancy.

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Women who are depressed and women who take antidepressants during pregnancy may face a greater risk of delivering their baby prematurely, according to a recent study in the American Journal of Psychiatry and cited in Health magazine.

For the study, researchers observed a group of 300 pregnant women, most of whom did not suffer from depression but some either had a history of depression or reported becoming depressed during pregnancy. Of those observed, some took medication to treat their depression either for part of their pregnancy or for the entire pregnancy; some did not take medication and remained depressed; and some did not take medication and reported being depressed for only part of their pregnancy.

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Years ago, it was thought that pregnancy protected women from depression, but researchers have since learned that being pregnant and recent childbirth may actually contribute to a woman’s depression, filling her with a range of emotions that make dealing with the symptoms of the condition even more difficult. According to the Mayo Clinic, an estimated 10 percent of women experience depression during pregnancy.

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Women who have suffered from depression are more likely than women who have never suffered from the disorder to experience postpartum depression, according to the March of Dimes. Postpartum depression is a serious medical condition that goes beyond the so-called “baby blues.” Medical experts believe that a woman’s changing hormones following delivery may cause the disorder.

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Christine K’s newborn baby spent her first four days of life hooked up to tubes in an incubator at a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit, a helpless victim of her mother’s longtime use of antidepressants prior to and for the first six months of her pregnancy.

Christine K had been prescribed a combination of Paxil, Risperdal and Depakote five years prior to becoming pregnant. While pregnant she read that Paxil could be harmful to her unborn baby. She asked her doctor take her off the meds, but he insisted she stay on them.

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A group representing America’s obstetricians is recommending that women avoid the antidepressant Paxil if they are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant, due to a potential heightened risk for birth defects.

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The parents of a two-year old boy have filed a lawsuit against the maker of Paxil, alleging that the mother’s use of the antidepressant during pregnancy cause her son to be born with severe heart defects.

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