April 15, 2019 – New Drug Indication

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Anchor lead: A new drug for postpartum depression offers hope for a common condition, Elizabeth Tracey reports

Postpartum depression is surprisingly common, so it’s good news that the FDA has recently approved a new drug to treat the disorder. Lauren Osborne, a postpartum depression expert at Johns Hopkins, reviews what’s known about the condition.

Osborne: Postpartum depression is the only time in a human’s lifetime when we have a clear biological trigger that is related to a mood episode. The actual symptoms of postpartum depression aren’t so different from depression at other times of life but we know that there’s that biological trigger and it’s something like 15 to 20% of women will develop a postpartum depression. We actually know the rate is much higher in certain populations. Women who are of low income, low socioeconomic status, or have a lot of risk factors like a strong family history or their own prior history of depression, their rates are even higher.  :34

Osborne says any woman who feels she may be experiencing postpartum depression should seek help immediately. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.