Drug use strong predictor for postpartum mental health problems
"There's been a lot of attention recently on the need to incorporate mental health screening into prenatal care, and it has largely focused on identifying women who are at risk of postpartum depression," says Sarah Desmarais, an associate professor of psychology at NC State and co-author of a journal article on the work. "Our study has two important findings that are relevant to that discussion," Desmarais says. "First, we found that women are at risk of significant postpartum mental health problems other than depression -- stress and anxiety are serious issues that merit attention. Second, by incorporating questions about a woman's history of drug use, we can help health-care providers more accurately identify women who are at risk of postpartum stress and anxiety -- and take steps to provide the necessary care." The study was not designed to focus specifically on drug use, but was instead aimed at answering the broader question of whether w...