According to Ohio State researchers, pregnant women who are depressed may be more prone to severe flu symptoms if they catch the seasonal flu.
The researchers based their conclusions upon 22 pregnant women who had received a seasonal flu shot. Those with significant depression symptoms had a stronger inflammatory response to the flu shot than those who were not depressed. These findings suggest, say the researchers, that a depressed pregnant woman's immune system behaves differently, possibly causing them to have more serious symptoms if they do contract the flu.
"Inflammatory responses to vaccination do no harm, are mild, and typically go away within a few days. But an extended inflammatory response to vaccination, such as the one seen in women with the most depressive symptoms, isn't expected, and it serves as a way to estimate how somebody might respond to an actual infection or illness," said lead author Lisa Christian in a university press release.
The researchers suggest that, based upon these results, it would be wise for pregnant depressed women to get seasonal flu shots in order to avoid having a severe reaction if they do contract the flu.
Public health agencies advise that pregnant women get seasonal flu shots, but only 12-13% actually do, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
"It will be interesting to see how that might change this year, in light of CDC recommendations that pregnant women receive seasonal and H1N1 flu vaccinations," said Christian.
The study was published online in advance of publication in the November issue of Brain, Behavior, and Immunity.
There are many products on the market that claim to help Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), but not all meet the recommended requirements. These are the requirements recommended by the Center for Environmental Therapeutics (CET) for effective light box therapy. Make sure that any unit you purchase meets these specifications.
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Women with a history of depression who used psychiatric medications had triple the risk of giving birth to a premature baby, according to a study in the September/October issue of Women's Health Issues.
Amelia Gavin and her team at the University of Washington, University of Michigan and Michigan State University, found that a combination of medication use and depression - either before or during pregnancy - were strongly associated with delivery before the 35th week of pregnancy.
The researchers also found that, without medication use, elevated levels of depression symptoms at midpregnancy and history of depression did not pose the same increased risk of preterm delivery.
At this point it is not clear, however, whether the medications are the direct cause of preterm delivery or whether medication use is simply an indicator of the severity of the mother's depression, which in itself could be a factor in pre-term delivery, said co-author Kristine Siefert.
According to lead author Amelia Gavin, the findings highlight a need for carefully planned studies to sort out the true associations between depression, psychiatric medication and preterm delivery.
"Women with depression face difficult decisions regarding the benefits and risks of using psychotropic medications in pregnancy," said Gavin. "Therefore, a focus on disentangling medication effects and depression effects on mother and offspring health should be a major clinical priority."
