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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Larry Hoover on September 7, 2004, at 11:46:25
Back in May, I did a literature search on this subject, in an effort to come to an informed conclusion about the risks of: a) maintaining antidepressant therapy during pregnancy; and, b) the risks of untreated depression during pregnancy.
I posted a rough draft (I would polish it, if I was going to seek publication) to alt.support.depression.medication. Because of the size of the file, and limits on the size of Usenet posts, I split my review into two sections. I created simplified URLs for the two pieces, below.
http://tinyurl.com/6qpya
http://tinyurl.com/52ac7Lar
Posted by SLS on September 7, 2004, at 15:04:20
In reply to antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by Larry Hoover on September 7, 2004, at 11:46:25
Well done, Larry.
http://tinyurl.com/6qpya
http://tinyurl.com/52ac7Thanks for posting this.
- Scott
Posted by gardenergirl on September 7, 2004, at 15:45:51
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy » Larry Hoover, posted by SLS on September 7, 2004, at 15:04:20
Yep, I've bookmarked it for when the time comes.
Thanks for doing this, Lar.
gg
Posted by oeps7 on September 8, 2004, at 14:31:42
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by gardenergirl on September 7, 2004, at 15:45:51
Thanks Larry,
My husband and I are trying to conceive now and I have made the decision to remain on effexor due to my history of depression and anxiety, possibly I would taper slowly in the third trimester and then go immediately back on after delivery. Your essays have affirmed what I have read on the subject as well as what my doctors tell me. All the best to you and thanks.
Mary
Posted by gardenergirl on September 8, 2004, at 15:56:35
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by oeps7 on September 8, 2004, at 14:31:42
good luck to you on your quest!
gg
Posted by beatrix34 on September 8, 2004, at 21:09:57
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy » oeps7, posted by gardenergirl on September 8, 2004, at 15:56:35
Thank yo SO much for all of your research. I have been looking to get some reference for this matter for quite some time. My dr told me that staying on anti-depressants during pregnancy is fine. I am thinking of trying to concieve within the next few months!
I have been trying to ween off the meds but I don't feel as much pressure now.
Again, THANK YOU!
Bea
Posted by Larry Hoover on September 9, 2004, at 7:09:33
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by beatrix34 on September 8, 2004, at 21:09:57
> Thank yo SO much for all of your research. I have been looking to get some reference for this matter for quite some time. My dr told me that staying on anti-depressants during pregnancy is fine. I am thinking of trying to concieve within the next few months!
>
> I have been trying to ween off the meds but I don't feel as much pressure now.
>
> Again, THANK YOU!
>
> BeaYou're very welcome. I'm glad that I was of some help.
Lar
Posted by oeps7 on September 9, 2004, at 8:16:46
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy » oeps7, posted by gardenergirl on September 8, 2004, at 15:56:35
Thanks Gardener girl, good luck in your quest too! I feel like I am making the right decision.
Posted by oeps7 on September 9, 2004, at 8:17:52
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by beatrix34 on September 8, 2004, at 21:09:57
I am going to sprinkle some baby dust too you Bea. Good luck on the quest :) Mary
Posted by beatrix34 on September 11, 2004, at 22:59:22
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by oeps7 on September 9, 2004, at 8:17:52
Thank you :) I am excited and nervous!
Posted by Larry Hoover on September 13, 2004, at 9:55:55
In reply to antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by Larry Hoover on September 7, 2004, at 11:46:25
Seems like stress during pregnancy has short-term and long-term effects on infants, including a 17-point decrease in IQ. The full-test version of this article attributes this effect to high maternal cortisol, which we know occurs in untreated depression, but which is substantially controlled by antidepressant therapy. Dr. King said, in an interview, "....we need to be really careful with pregnant women when something bad happens..." Dr. La-Plante emphasized that every effort should be expended in making expectant mothers more stable and comfortable.
Pediatr Res. 2004 Jul 7 [Epub ahead of print]Stress During Pregnancy Affects General Intellectual and Language Functioning in Human Toddlers.
Laplante DP, Barr RG, Brunet A, Galbaud Du Fort G, Meaney M, Saucier JF, Zelazo PR, King S.
Douglas Hospital Research Centre, McGill University, Verdun, Canada H4H 1R3; Department of Pediatrics, Montreal Children's Hospital and McGill University, Montreal, Canada H3H 1P3; Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Canada H3A 1A1; Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Community Studies Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McGill University, Montreal, Canada H3A 1A2; Department of Psychiatry, Ste. Justine Hospital and Universite de Montreal, Montreal, Canada H3T 1C5; and Department of Psychology P.R.Z.], McGill University, Montreal, Canada H3A 1B1.
Prenatal maternal stress has been shown to impair functioning in nonhuman primate offspring. Little is known about the effects of prenatal stress on intellectual and language development in humans because it is difficult to identify sufficiently large samples of pregnant women who have been exposed to an independent stressor. We took advantage of a natural disaster (January 1998 ice storm in Quebec, Canada) to determine the effect of the objective severity of pregnant women's stress exposure on general intellectual and language development of their children. Bayley Mental Development Index (MDI) scores and parent-reported language abilities of 58 toddlers of mothers who were exposed to varying levels of prenatal stress were obtained at 2 y of age. The hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that the toddlers' birth weight and age at testing accounted for 12.0% and 14.8% of the variance in the Bayley MDI scores and in productive language abilities, respectively. More important, the level of prenatal stress exposure accounted for an additional 11.4% and 12.1% of the variance in the toddlers' Bayley MDI and productive language abilities and uniquely accounted for 17.3% in the variance of their receptive language abilities. The more severe the level of prenatal stress exposure, the poorer the toddlers' abilities. The level of prenatal stress exposure accounted for a significant proportion of the variance in the three dependent variables above and beyond that already accounted for by non-ice storm-related factors. We suspect that high levels of prenatal stress exposure, particularly early in the pregnancy, may negatively affect the brain development of the fetus, reflected in the lower general intellectual and language abilities in the toddlers.
Posted by oeps7 on September 14, 2004, at 12:49:56
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by Larry Hoover on September 13, 2004, at 9:55:55
Thank you for the information Larry this helps me a lot. I know I am doing the right thing because I have a long history of depression,anxiety and ocd. I think going off the meds would be bad for the baby.
Mary
If you find anymore info please let me know. My gyno who doesn't know my history says come off meds but my pdoc and psychiatrist say its much safer to be on the meds for the baby. What are your thoughts?
Posted by Larry Hoover on September 14, 2004, at 13:03:01
In reply to Re: antidepressant use in pregnancy, posted by oeps7 on September 14, 2004, at 12:49:56
> Thank you for the information Larry this helps me a lot. I know I am doing the right thing because I have a long history of depression,anxiety and ocd. I think going off the meds would be bad for the baby.
> MaryI think an individual decision like yours is very realistic. There is no general rule. You have to decide for yourself, what is best, given the alternatives.
> If you find anymore info please let me know. My gyno who doesn't know my history says come off meds but my pdoc and psychiatrist say its much safer to be on the meds for the baby. What are your thoughts?
Here's some more on the subject:
http://www.google.ca/groups?hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&selm=EhyVc.37742%24Tr.1823824%40news20.bellglobal.comI copied that article out of the National Post, and I searched for and found the original article written by Koren, and inserted the link. Unfortunately, the link is broken in two pieces at Google, but you can paste the extra bit back into place.
Lar
This is the end of the thread.
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