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Depressed women may be more apt to deliver early.
THE QUESTION Does depression affect pregnancy?
THIS STUDY involved 791 women who were screened early in their pregnancies for symptoms of depression.
When they were, on average, 10 weeks pregnant, 326 of the women (about 41 percent) had depressive symptoms, including 172 whose symptoms were rated severe on a standardized scale. About 1.5 percent of the women had been prescribed an antidepressant.
Overall, 44 women gave birth prematurely (before 37 weeks gestation). Those with the most severe symptoms were more than twice as likely as women without depression to have a premature delivery; milder symptoms correlated to about a 60 percent increased risk.
WHO MAY BE AFFECTED? Pregnant women, about 12 percent of whom deliver prematurely each year in the United States.
Preterm births are a leading cause of infant deaths. Although depression after childbirth, known as postpartum depression, is widely recognized, medical experts say experiencing depressive symptoms while pregnant also is common.
CAVEATS Depression was measured in early pregnancy only. The study did not determine why depression might contribute to premature delivery.
