Pregnant women with epilepsy tend to exhibit more symptoms of anxiety and depression during pregnancy and postpartum than their healthy counterparts, a new study has found.
More than 300 pregnant women with epilepsy (PWWE) and 100 healthy pregnant women took part in the study.
The results were released in the journal Neurology.
“Symptoms of depression (Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS)) and anxiety (Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)) were also assessed along with multiple clinical factors,” the authors explained in their findings.
“Although SCID-based major depressive episodes did not differ across groups, this prospective study confirms higher rates of psychiatric symptoms in patients with epilepsy during pregnancy and postpartum, provides new data on associated factors, and underscores the importance of anxiety in risk for depression,” the authors determined.
“Given the risks, PWWE should be routinely assessed, and symptomatic patients should be offered treatment.”
