Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To ascertain the impact of postpartum onset (PPO) on the subsequent time course of mood disorders.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This retrospective study compared per year rates of excited (manic or mixed) and depress...

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Main Authors: Olgiati Paolo, Serretti Alessandro, Colombo Cristina
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2006-01-01
Series:BMC Psychiatry
Online Access:http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-244X/6/4
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spelling doaj-ad8cf0e8ede64a17837aa373ced48cc82020-11-24T21:39:49ZengBMCBMC Psychiatry1471-244X2006-01-0161410.1186/1471-244X-6-4Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disordersOlgiati PaoloSerretti AlessandroColombo Cristina<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To ascertain the impact of postpartum onset (PPO) on the subsequent time course of mood disorders.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This retrospective study compared per year rates of excited (manic or mixed) and depressive episodes between fifty-five women with bipolar (N = 22) or major depressive (N = 33) disorders with first episode occurring postpartum (within four weeks after childbirth according to DSM-IV definition) and 218 non-postpartum onset (NPPO) controls. Such patients had a traceable illness course consisting of one or more episodes alternating with complete symptom remission and no additional diagnoses of axis I disorders, mental retardation or brain organic diseases. A number of variables reported to influence the course of mood disorders were controlled for as possible confounding factors</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Bipolar women with postpartum onset disorder had fewer excited episodes (p = 0.005) and fewer episodes of both polarities (p = 0.005) compared to non-postpartum onset subjects. No differences emerged in the rates of depressive episodes. All patients who met criteria for rapid cycling bipolar disorder (7 out of 123) were in the NPPO group. Among major depressives, PPO patients experienced fewer episodes (p = 0.016). With respect to clinical and treatment features, PPO-MDD subjects had less personality disorder comorbidity (p = 0.023) and were less likely to be on maintenance treatment compared to NPPO comparison subjects (p = 0.002)</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Such preliminary findings suggest that PPO mood disorders may be characterized by a less recurrent time course. Future research in this field should elucidate the role of comorbid personality disorders and treatment. Moreover it should clarify whether PPO disorders are also associated with a more positive outcome in terms of social functioning and quality of life.</p> http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-244X/6/4
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Olgiati Paolo
Serretti Alessandro
Colombo Cristina
spellingShingle Olgiati Paolo
Serretti Alessandro
Colombo Cristina
Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
BMC Psychiatry
author_facet Olgiati Paolo
Serretti Alessandro
Colombo Cristina
author_sort Olgiati Paolo
title Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
title_short Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
title_full Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
title_fullStr Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
title_full_unstemmed Influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
title_sort influence of postpartum onset on the course of mood disorders
publisher BMC
series BMC Psychiatry
issn 1471-244X
publishDate 2006-01-01
description <p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To ascertain the impact of postpartum onset (PPO) on the subsequent time course of mood disorders.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This retrospective study compared per year rates of excited (manic or mixed) and depressive episodes between fifty-five women with bipolar (N = 22) or major depressive (N = 33) disorders with first episode occurring postpartum (within four weeks after childbirth according to DSM-IV definition) and 218 non-postpartum onset (NPPO) controls. Such patients had a traceable illness course consisting of one or more episodes alternating with complete symptom remission and no additional diagnoses of axis I disorders, mental retardation or brain organic diseases. A number of variables reported to influence the course of mood disorders were controlled for as possible confounding factors</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Bipolar women with postpartum onset disorder had fewer excited episodes (p = 0.005) and fewer episodes of both polarities (p = 0.005) compared to non-postpartum onset subjects. No differences emerged in the rates of depressive episodes. All patients who met criteria for rapid cycling bipolar disorder (7 out of 123) were in the NPPO group. Among major depressives, PPO patients experienced fewer episodes (p = 0.016). With respect to clinical and treatment features, PPO-MDD subjects had less personality disorder comorbidity (p = 0.023) and were less likely to be on maintenance treatment compared to NPPO comparison subjects (p = 0.002)</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Such preliminary findings suggest that PPO mood disorders may be characterized by a less recurrent time course. Future research in this field should elucidate the role of comorbid personality disorders and treatment. Moreover it should clarify whether PPO disorders are also associated with a more positive outcome in terms of social functioning and quality of life.</p>
url http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-244X/6/4
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