A new study published in the February issue of Archives of General Psychiatry suggests that a simple blood test can predict whether a woman is likely to develop postpartum depression (PPD).
Researchers from the University of California, Irvine, analyzed blood samples from 100 pregnant women during weeks 15, 19, 25, 31, and 37 of their pregnancies, and tested the levels of a hormone, placental corticotropin-releasing hormone (pCRH), found in the placenta. The women were also screened for depression during the last four visits, and then again postpartum. Sixteen of the 100 women in the study developed postpartum depression symptoms. In those sixteen women, the level of pCRH found at week 25 of the pregnancy was high.
Post a Comment