“According to an oral abstract presented at the American Society for Reproductive Medicines 2024 Scientific Congress and Expo in Denver, Colorado, women with endometriosis face a significantly higher risk of being diagnosed with various psychiatric disorders during the postpartum period.”

A study presented at the 2024 Scientific Congress and Expo of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine found that women with endometriosis have a higher likelihood of developing certain mental health disorders after childbirth.

The researchers analyzed postpartum depression, anxiety, mood disturbances, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in over 200 million adult women from 67 healthcare organizations who gave birth between 2005 and 2023.

The results showed that, within a year after childbirth, women with endometriosis before pregnancy were 25% more likely to be diagnosed with postpartum depression, 85% more likely to experience postpartum mood disturbances, 44% more likely to be diagnosed with anxiety, and 1.26 times more likely to be diagnosed with OCD.

Among the women studied, about 75% had no preexisting depression. For these women, endometriosis was linked to a 17% higher risk of postpartum depression, a 95% higher risk of OCD, a 72% higher risk of mood disturbance, and a 38% higher risk of anxiety. For women without prior depression, the increased risks for OCD, mood disturbances, and anxiety were 64%, 42%, and 25%, respectively. The risk of postpartum depression in these women, however, was negligible.

The researchers concluded that preexisting depression appears to be the stronger risk factor, suggesting that endometriosis alone may have less influence on postpartum depression when preexisting depression is present.

(Source:https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/endometriosis-raises-rates-postpartum-depression-other-2024a1000khk)