• pregnancy

    High Levels of Distress in Pregnant and Postpartum Women During the Pandemic

    This international survey demonstrates that pregnant and postpartum women are more likely to report elevated symptoms of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress than others in the general population in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Caffeine and Pregnancy: How Much is Safe?

    Many women ask about the safety of drinking caffeinated beverages during pregnancy. A recent study looked at this question, analyzing data from the NICHD Fetal Growth Studies–Singletons, which included a group of 2,055 nonsmoking women at low risk for fetal growth problems.  Caffeine consumption was evaluated using plasma concentrations of caffeine and paraxanthine (a metabolite of caffeine) and self-reported caffeinated beverage consumption at 10 to 13 weeks gestation.

    Essential Reads: Bupropion (Wellbutrin) and Risk for Major Malformations

    Bupropion is commonly used to treat depression, and is also prescribed to support smoking cessation. Early data on bupropion-exposure during pregnancy raised concern for a possible increase in risk of malformations of the heart and large blood vessels in bupropion-exposed infants. Subsequent data from bupropion pregnancy registries has been reassuring, however, and do not demonstrate an overall increase in risk of cardiac defects following first trimester bupropion exposure. Although the overall risk of cardiac defects was not increased, the distribution of specific defects in these registries was unexpected in some ways. For example, the GlaxoSmithKline Bupropion Pregnancy Registry included two cases of coarctation of the aorta out of the 675 bupropion-exposed infants, compared to the rate of 6 cases per 10,000 births in the general population.

    Essential Reads: Should Lithium Dose Be Reduced Prior to Delivery?

    The dosing of lithium presents certain challenges during pregnancy.  During pregnancy, there is a physiologic increase in the glomerular filtration rate (GFR), which is a measure of how quickly the kidney clears renally excreted compounds, [...]

    New Research from the CWMH: No Increase in Major Malformations in Children Prenatally Exposed to Aripiprazole

    Despite the increasing use of the newer atypical or second-generation antipsychotic agents to treat a spectrum of psychiatric disorders, including psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder, major depression, PTSD and other anxiety disorders, we have relatively little [...]

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