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Blog2023-08-08T17:17:12-04:00

Weekly Roundup for AUGUST 31, 2017: Recent Publications in Women’s Mental Health

A new study looks at the effects of telephone-delivered depression care management in postpartum women.  The July issue of Birth Defects Research features a collection of reviews on perinatal mental health.   Telephone-Based Depression Care Management for Postpartum Women: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Wisner KL, Sit DKY, McShea M, Luther JF, Eng HF, Dills JL, Moses-Kolko EL, Wisniewski SR.  J Clin Psychiatry. 2017 Aug 8. In women with postpartum depression, clinicians [...]

August 31st, 2017|

Prenatal Exposure to Benzodiazepines and Sedative-Hypnotics

Over the last decade, we have seen multiple studies looking at the long term effects of prenatal exposure to antidepressants, particularly the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRIs, on children's behavior.  Although benzodiazepines, such as lorazepam (Ativan) and clonazepam (Klonopin), and sedative-hypnotic medications are used relatively frequently during pregnancy, we have much less information regarding the long-term effects of prenatal exposure to these medications.  Using data from the Norwegian Mother and [...]

August 31st, 2017|

National Pregnancy Registry for Atypical Antipsychotics Milestone

  We are excited to announce the enrollment of our 1000th participant in the National Pregnancy Registry for Atypical Antipsychotics! Formed in 2008, the Registry was established at MGH to prospectively evaluate the rates of malformations among infants exposed in utero to atypical antipsychotics. Data from the Registry thus far suggest that atypical antipsychotics as a class are not major teratogens on the order of valproic acid. The large number of [...]

August 23rd, 2017|

New Research from the CWMH: Patterns of Atypical Antipsychotic Use During Pregnancy

  The use of the newer “atypical” or second-generation antipsychotic agents is increasing.  Atypical antipsychotics are now used to treat a spectrum of psychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, PTSD and other anxiety disorders.  Using data from the Medicaid Analytic eXtract (MAX) data of pregnant women who delivered infants born between 2001 and 2010, Park and colleagues looked at patterns of antipsychotic use during pregnancy.   Among 1,522,247 pregnancies [...]

August 21st, 2017|

Weekly Roundup for AUGUST 18, 2017: Recent Publications in Women’s Mental Health

Brandlistuen and colleagues look at the long-term effects of prenatal exposure to benzodiazepines and sedative-hypnotics, attempting to control for genetic and environmental confounds by using sibling-controlled comparisons.  Using data from Danish registers, Liu and colleagues find that first-onset nonpsychotic postpartum affective disorder can be a marker of underlying bipolarity. Association of prenatal exposure to benzodiazepines and child internalizing problems: A sibling-controlled cohort study. Brandlistuen RE, Ystrom E, Hernandez-Diaz S, Skurtveit S, [...]

August 20th, 2017|

Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy Associated with Psychiatric Illness in Offspring

  In the United States, the prevalence of smoking in pregnant women has declined; however, according to data gathered from 29 states by the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS), about 13% of women smoked during the last 3 months of pregnancy.  The prevalence varied according to state, with the highest rates reported in West Virginia (28.7%), Arkansas (24.0%),Tennessee (19.7%), and Maine (19.5%). Certain groups of women were more likely to [...]

August 17th, 2017|
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