Depression around childbirth linked to future heart risk: Study

Women who are diagnosed with depression around the time they give birth appear to have a higher risk of heart problems in later life according to a new study Those diagnosed with perinatal depression which includes postnatal depression and depression during pregnancy may be at higher risk of heart problems including high blood pressure heart disease and heart failure for up to 20 years afterwardsSwedish researchers said that the links between depression around childbirth and the longterm risk of cardiovascular disease are ldquolargely unknownrdquo as they published a study tracking women for more than a decadeThe study published in the European Heart Journal examined data on almost 56000 women diagnosed with perinatal depression between 2001 and 2014Their information was matched to almost 546000 who had babies during the same time period who were not diagnosed with perinatal depressionThe women were tracked an average of 10 years with some monitored for up to 20 years after diagnosisSome 64 per cent of women with perinatal depression were diagnosed with cardiovascular disease during the followup compared to 37 per cent of those who were not diagnosed with depressionResearchers found that those diagnosed with perinatal depression had a 36 per cent increased risk of cardiovascular disease during the followup periodWomen diagnosed with depression before childbirth had a 29 per cent increased risk while those diagnosed with postnatal depression had a 42 per cent higher odds of developing heart disease they foundThe results were ldquomost pronouncedrdquo in women who had not suffered depression before pregnancy the authors saidThey said the elevated risk was found across all types of cardiovascular disease drawing particular attention to the increased odds of women developing ischemic heart disease heart failure and high blood pressureOur findings may help identify people who are at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease so that steps can be taken to reduce this risk said Dr Emma Brann from the Karolinska Institutet StockholmldquoWe know that perinatal depression is both preventable and treatable and for many people itrsquos the first episode of depression theyrsquove ever experienced Brann saidOur findings provide more reason for ensuring maternal care is holistic with equal attention on both physical and mental health It remains unclear how and through what pathways perinatal depression leads to cardiovascular diseaseldquoWe need to do more research to understand this so that we can find the best ways to prevent depression and lower the risk of CVDAcademics also analysed data on sisters where available and found that the increased risk of developing CVD remained in the sister who experienced perinatal depression compared with her sister who had not experienced itWomen who suffered perinatal depression had a 20 per cent higher risk of heart disease compared to their sistersldquoThe slightly lower difference in risk between sisters suggests that there could be genetic or familial factors partly involvedrdquo Dr Brann saidldquoThere could also be other factors involved as is the case for the link between other forms of depression and CVD These include alterations in the immune system oxidative stress and lifestyle changes implicated in major depressionrdquo Dr Brann concludedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever