When providing information to patients regarding the use of medications during pregnancy, one key element of the decision-making process is an appraisal of the risks associated with untreated psychiatric illness in the mother. While there [...]
For women with bipolar disorder, choosing whether to maintain or discontinue treatment with a mood stabilizer during pregnancy is challenging. This is a process which requires careful and thoughtful consideration, weighing the risk of adverse [...]
According to a recent analysis of national data by the Centers for Disease Control, the number of pregnant women with opioid use disorder (as documented at the time of delivery) more than quadrupled from 1999 [...]
Many women who come to our clinic with questions regarding the use of medications during pregnancy suffer from some type of anxiety disorder. Most of those women benefit from treatment with an SSRI or SNRI [...]
There have long been concerns regarding the safety of the anticonvulsant valproic acid (Depakote) during pregnancy. Back in 2009, the American Academy of Neurology and American Epilepsy Society recommended against the use of valproic acid [...]
Women with postpartum depression often complain of social isolation, and multiple studies have documented that having inadequate social supports is a risk factor for postpartum depression. A recent study suggests that increasing a mother’s social [...]
In 2016, the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommended that all adults, including pregnant and postpartum women, should be screened for depression; the task force has extended those recommendations by stating that all pregnant [...]
According to a recent analysis of national data by the Centers for Disease Control, the number of pregnant women with opioid use disorder (as documented at the time of delivery) more than quadrupled from 1999 [...]
Because even small amounts of fetal exposure to alcohol have been associated with a constellation of adverse effects, women who are pregnant are counselled to avoid all consumption of alcohol. Women who are pregnant or [...]
Pregnancy-associated mortality, defined as the death of a woman during pregnancy or within one year of the termination of pregnancy, is increasing in Massachusetts. In 2012, there were 30.4 deaths/100,000 live births. In 2014, the [...]