Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?

The relationship between thyroid dysfunction and postpartum depression has been investigated for quite some time now, but no consensus has been reached regarding the need for screening for thyroid function during pregnancy. This paper aims to investigate whether thyroid hormone screening in pregnanc...

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Main Authors: Anca A. Simionescu, Erika Marin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2019-05-01
Series:Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1161&context=jmms
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author Anca A. Simionescu
Erika Marin
author_facet Anca A. Simionescu
Erika Marin
author_sort Anca A. Simionescu
collection DOAJ
description The relationship between thyroid dysfunction and postpartum depression has been investigated for quite some time now, but no consensus has been reached regarding the need for screening for thyroid function during pregnancy. This paper aims to investigate whether thyroid hormone screening in pregnancy might contribute to the diagnosis of postpartum depression. Depression was assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) - one of the most widely used measures in detecting postpartum depression and anxiety. Thyroid function was measured using the commonly recommended thyroid laboratory tests. A structured questionnaire was given to 61 patients closely monitored during their pregnancy and at least one year after giving birth, including for thyroid and depression disorders. The questionnaire was completed anonymously online by the patients and had three sections: one containing the EPDS questions, one assessing thyroid function, and a demographic section. The interdependency between thyroid and depression was analyzed in SPSS using the Pearson chi-square test of independence. The results show no statistically significant relationship between thyroid dysfunction and depression. In other words, women suffering from thyroid dysfunctions have no greater rate of depression compared to women without thyroid dysfunction. As a result, it screening for thyroid disorders during pregnancy may not provide relevant information for detecting postnatal depression.
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spelling doaj-art-e56aee544d65417ca75b63f712a946e82025-08-20T02:04:05ZengMDPI AGJournal of Mind and Medical Sciences2392-76742019-05-016110310910.22543/7674.61.P103109Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?Anca A. SimionescuErika MarinThe relationship between thyroid dysfunction and postpartum depression has been investigated for quite some time now, but no consensus has been reached regarding the need for screening for thyroid function during pregnancy. This paper aims to investigate whether thyroid hormone screening in pregnancy might contribute to the diagnosis of postpartum depression. Depression was assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) - one of the most widely used measures in detecting postpartum depression and anxiety. Thyroid function was measured using the commonly recommended thyroid laboratory tests. A structured questionnaire was given to 61 patients closely monitored during their pregnancy and at least one year after giving birth, including for thyroid and depression disorders. The questionnaire was completed anonymously online by the patients and had three sections: one containing the EPDS questions, one assessing thyroid function, and a demographic section. The interdependency between thyroid and depression was analyzed in SPSS using the Pearson chi-square test of independence. The results show no statistically significant relationship between thyroid dysfunction and depression. In other words, women suffering from thyroid dysfunctions have no greater rate of depression compared to women without thyroid dysfunction. As a result, it screening for thyroid disorders during pregnancy may not provide relevant information for detecting postnatal depression.https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1161&context=jmmsPostpartum depression (PPD)thyroid dysfunctionEdinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EDPS)
spellingShingle Anca A. Simionescu
Erika Marin
Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
Journal of Mind and Medical Sciences
Postpartum depression (PPD)
thyroid dysfunction
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EDPS)
title Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
title_full Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
title_fullStr Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
title_full_unstemmed Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
title_short Postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction– should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders?
title_sort postpartum depression and thyroid dysfunction should pregnant women be screened for thyroid disorders
topic Postpartum depression (PPD)
thyroid dysfunction
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EDPS)
url https://scholar.valpo.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1161&context=jmms
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