Puerperal depression

The puerperal depression – a type of a clinical depression which influences women is more rare than men, as a rule, after the delivery. According to researches, prevalence of a puerperal depression among women makes from 5% to 25%, among men, in particular young fathers, the frequency of a puerperal depression makes from 1% to 25,5%.

The reasons of a puerperal depression and mechanisms of its identification are up to the end not found out. According to the research conducted in the USA it was revealed that the puerperal depression at women can be predicted from 85% probability on chemical change in DNA of 2 genes by means of blood test during pregnancy.

Sometimes the puerperal depression is confused to puerperal psychosis which effects are much more serious. It meets much less often and is followed by disturbances of process of thinking, nonsense, hallucinations, disorganization of the speech and behavior.

The puerperal depression can result in incompatibility of mother with the child as women with such diagnosis often pay more attention to the negative events connected with care of the child.

Reasons of a puerperal depression

The etiology of a puerperal depression is up to the end not found out. One researches show that are the reasons of a puerperal depression a lack of vitamins B an organism. Other researches show that considerable changes in a hormonal background of the woman are more probable causes of a puerperal depression during pregnancy. However remains not clear why only 10-15% of women have a puerperal depression, changes in a hormonal background happen absolutely at all women in labor.

How many the puerperal depression lasts

The puerperal depression benign (soft short attacks of a depression) begins to develop within the first four or five weeks after the delivery and lasts up to 6 months. In 10-20% of cases the puerperal (perinatal) depression in a severe form (with psychosis attacks) is a consequence of a depression benign and can last about one year and more. Generally, how many the puerperal depression lasts, depends on the person as the main sign of development of a disease is the unwillingness to ask for the help.

Symptoms of a puerperal depression

Symptoms of a puerperal depression are:

• Concern, anger or irritability;
• Grief and grief;
• Feeling of depression and fault;
• Fear to do much harm to the child or itself;
• Excessive concern or total absence of interest in the child;
• Lack of energy;
• Hopelessness;
• Social self-isolation;
• Headaches, stethalgias, cardiopalmus, numbness or pricking in hands or legs, bystry shallow breathing;
• Problems with a dream;
• Lack of appetite;
• Problems with focusing and memory;
• Low self-assessment;
• Impossibility of adoption of simple decisions;
• Decrease in a libido;
• Lack of interest in what interested earlier.

Risk factors of a puerperal depression

Though the reasons of a puerperal depression are up to the end not found out, presumably there is a number of factors which are increased by predisposition to its emergence, their number enter:

• The physiological injuries which arose at the time of delivery;
• The increased prolactin level;
• Oxytocin exhaustion;
• Feeding replacement with a breast by artificial feeding;
• Tobacco smoking;
• Low self-assessment;
• Prenatal depression during pregnancy;
• Low social support;
• The way of life accompanied with constant stresses;
• Negative matrimonial attitudes;
• Lonely marital status;
• Low social and economic status;
• Unplanned or undesirable pregnancy.

These factors, as we know, correlate with a puerperal depression. In this case it is meant correlation that the high level of a prenatal depression is connected with the high level of a puerperal depression, and the low level of a prenatal depression is connected with the low level of a puerperal depression.

Treatment of a puerperal depression

Numerous scientific research and scientific articles support the idea that the puerperal depression will respond to treatment with use of various methods. If the reasons of a puerperal depression are connected with social factors (shortage of money, lack of support), treatment has to be directed to mitigation and building relations with the partner, attraction of the additional help in care of children from relatives, cognitive therapy and other.

Other options of treatment of a puerperal depression include:

• Medical examination to exclude physiological problems;
• Cognitive behavioural therapy (psychotherapy form);
• Reception of special medicines;
• Visit of groups of the help;
• Healthy food;
• Healthy sleep.

The experienced doctor will develop treatment planning of a puerperal depression individually for each case. This plan can include any combination of the stated above treatment options, and also some work with the partner.