Weekly Roundup for JULY 15, 2022: Recent Publications in Women’s Mental Health

PMS AND PMDD

Aragno E, Fagiolini A, Cuomo A, Paschetta E, Maina G, Rosso G.  Arch Womens Ment Health. 2022 Apr;25(2):257-266.

This review observes that a subset of women with bipolar disorder are vulnerable to the impact of menstrual cycle events. Menarche seems to be associated with age at onset of bipolar illness especially in case of bipolar disorder type I and the specific age at menarche may predict some clinical features of the disorder. Menstrual cycle likely affects the course of bipolar disorder but the pattern of mood variability is not clear. Menopause appears to be not only a period of vulnerability to mood alteration, especially depressive episodes, and impairment of quality of life, but also a potential trigger of bipolar illness onset.

INFERTILITY AND MENTAL HEALTH

PSYCHIATRIC ILLNESS DURING PREGNANCY

Barnes DL.  Arch Womens Ment Health. 2022 Feb; 25(1):51-59. 

This review concludes that dissociation is a consistently seen symptom in pervasive pregnancy denial.  The experience of a dissociative episode while giving birth can unintentionally result in neonaticide. Dissociation, in addition to other commonly seen symptoms across cases, suggests specific diagnostic criteria that lend themselves to inclusion in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.

MEDICATIONS AND PREGNANCY

Rommel AS, Momen NC, Molenaar NM, Agerbo E, Bergink V, Munk-Olsen T, Liu X.  Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2022 Jun;145(6):544-556. 

Prenatal antidepressant exposure was associated with small decreases in gestational age and birthweight, as well as higher risk for moderate-to-late preterm birth, moderately low birthweight, neonatal admission and postnatal adaptation syndrome. No differences in risk were found for PPHN, or congenital malformations. The causality of the observed associations cannot be established due to the potential for unmeasured residual confounding linked to the underlying disease.

In utero exposure to antipsychotic medication and psychiatric outcomes in the offspring.

Momen NC, Robakis T, Liu X, Reichenberg A, Bergink V, Munk-Olsen T.  Neuropsychopharmacology. 2022 Feb;47(3):759-766. 

The study does not provide evidence of increased risk of psychiatric disorders among children of women who continue antipsychotic treatment during pregnancy. 

POSTPARTUM PSYCHIATRIC ILLNESS

Tanuma-Takahashi A, Tanemoto T, Nagata C, Yokomizo R, Konishi A, Takehara K, Ishikawa T, Yanaihara N, Samura O, Okamoto A.  BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2022 Jun 28;22(1):527. 

An EPDS score of 5 or greater at the second trimester may predict postpartum depressive symptoms.

Antidepressant discontinuation before or during pregnancy and risk of psychiatric emergency in Denmark: A population-based propensity score-matched cohort study.

Liu X, Molenaar N, Agerbo E, Momen NC, Rommel AS, Lupattelli A, Bergink V, Munk-Olsen T.

PLoS Med. 2022 Jan 31;19(1):e1003895.

In this study, discontinuing antidepressant medication during pregnancy (but not before) is associated with an apparent increased risk of psychiatric emergency compared to continuing treatment throughout pregnancy.

Cognitive processing of emotional information during menstrual phases in women with and without postpartum depression: differential sensitivity to changes in gonadal steroids.

Bloch M, Helpman L, Gilboa-Schechtman E, Fried-Zaig I.  Arch Womens Ment Health. 2022 May 9. 

Women with hPPD demonstrate a differential bias in cognitive processing of emotional information that is menstrual phase dependent, and did not correspond to similar difference in mood symptoms. These biases may reflect sensitivity to gonadal steroid fluctuations that are associated with PPD.

Interpersonal therapy versus antidepressant medication for treatment of postpartum depression and anxiety among women with HIV in Zambia: a randomized feasibility trial.

Spelke MB, Paul R, Blette BS, Meltzer-Brody S, Schiller CE, Ncheka JM, Kasaro MP, Price JT, Stringer JSA, Stringer EM.  J Int AIDS Soc. 2022 Jul;25(7):e25959.

IPT and antidepressant medication both improved measures of depression severity; however, a full-scale trial is required to determine whether treatment of PPD and anxiety improves maternal-infant HIV outcomes.

MEDICATIONS AND BREASTFEEDING

Kacirova I, Grundmann M, Brozmanova H.  Biomed Pharmacother. 2022 Jul;151:113167. 

Exposure to lamotrigine in breastfed newborns is lower than exposure during pregnancy. However, lamotrigine concentrations in both maternal serum and milk increase significantly after delivery.

PERINATAL SUBSTANCE USE

MATERNAL MENTAL HEALTH AND CHILD OUTCOMES

Suleri A, Blok E, Durkut M, Rommel AS, Witte L, Jaddoe V, Bergink V, White T.  Brain Behav Immun. 2022 Jul;103:63-72.

This study found a direct association between continuous maternal immune activation (MIA) and lower cerebellar volume. In girls, we demonstrated a negative indirect association between continuous MIA and total brain volume, through the mediator gestational age at birth. 

MENOPAUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH

Ye M, Shou M, Zhang J, Hu B, Liu C, Bi C, Lv T, Luo F, Zhang Z, Liang S, Feng H, Qian C, Cao S, Liu Z.  Psychol Med. 2022 Feb;52(3):433-445.  

CTBT is an effective psychological treatment for menopausal symptoms, with predominantly small to moderate effects. The efficacy is sustained long-term, although it declines somewhat over time. The efficacy was stronger for natural menopause symptoms, such as vasomotor symptoms, than for treatment-induced menopause symptoms. 

OTHER TOPICS IN WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH

Molenaar NM, Rommel AS, de Witte L, Dolan SM, Lieb W, Ibroci E, Ohrn S, Lynch J, Capuano C, Stadlbauer D, Krammer F, Zapata LB, Brody RI, Pop VJ, Jessel RH, Sperling RS, Afzal O, Gigase F, Missall R, Janevic T, Stone J, Howell EA, Bergink V.  Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol. 2022 Jul;36(4):466-475. 

Seropositivity for SARS-CoV-2 without RT-PCR positivity at delivery (suggesting that infection occurred earlier during pregnancy) was not associated with selected adverse maternal or neonatal outcomes among live births in a cohort sample from New York City.

The influence of structural racism, pandemic stress, and SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy with adverse birth outcomes.

Janevic T, Lieb W, Ibroci E, Lynch J, Lieber M, Molenaar NM, Rommel AS, de Witte L, Ohrn S, Carreño JM, Krammer F, Zapata LB, Snead MC, Brody RI, Jessel RH, Sestito S, Adler A, Afzal O, Gigase F, Missall R, Carrión D, Stone J, Bergink V, Dolan SM, Howell EA; Krammer Serology Core Study Group.  Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2022 Jul;4(4):100649.

Neighborhood measures of structural racism were associated with both increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection and higher rates of preterm birth, but these associations were independent and did not have a synergistic effect. 

The sexual and reproductive health of women with mental illness: a primary care registry study.

Hope H, Pierce M, Johnstone ED, Myers J, Abel KM.  Arch Womens Ment Health. 2022 Jun;25(3):585-593. 

Compared to women without mental illness, women with mental illness were more likely to experience recurrent miscarriage (adjOR = 1.50, 95%CI 1.41 to 1.60), termination (adjOR = 1.48, 95%CI 1.45 to 1.50), gynaecological diseases (adjHR = 1.39, 95%CI 1.37 to 1.40), sexually transmitted infections (adjHR = 1.47, 95%CI 1.43 to 1.51), reproductive cancers (adjHR = 1.10, 95%CI 1.02 to 1.19), contraception (adjHR = 1.28 95%CI 1.26 to 1.29) and emergency contraception (adjHR = 2.30, 95%CI 2.26 to 2.34).

Shared genetic basis between reproductive behaviors and anxiety-related disorders.Ohi K, Kuramitsu A, Fujikane D, Takai K, Sugiyama S, Shioiri T.  Mol Psychiatry. 2022 Jun 24.

This study suggests that those who have earlier sexual debut and childbirth are prone to risk for anxiety disorders and vice versa, while those who have later sexual debut and childbirth are genetically prone to risk for OCD.