Women With Depression During Pregnancy, After Birth Have a Higher Risk of CVD

Women with perinatal depression are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the following 20 years compared with those who have given birth without suffering from depression, according to a study published in the European Heart Journal.

In this study, researchers compared 55,539 Swedish women who were diagnosed with perinatal depression between 2001 and 2014 with a group of 545,567 Swedish women who had also given birth during that time but were not diagnosed with perinatal depression. Patients in the population were followed up through 2020 to assess if they developed CVD.

According to the results, 6.4% of women with depression developed CVD compared with 3.7% of women who did not have perinatal depression. Researchers noted that women with perinatal depression incurred a 36% higher risk of developing CVD. Moreover, the risk of high blood pressure was around 50% higher in the depressed population, the risk of ischemic heart disease around 37% higher, and the risk of heart failure around 36% higher.

According to Dr. Emma  Bränn, the study’s senior author, “Our findings may help identify people who are at a higher risk of [CVD] so that steps can be taken to reduce this risk. This study also adds to the established health risks of perinatal depression. We know that perinatal depression is both preventable and treatable, and for many people it’s the first episode of depression they’ve ever experienced. Our findings provide more reason for ensuring maternal care is holistic, with equal attention on both physical and mental health.”