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Postpartum depression

Última revisión: 23 Aug 2025
Última actualización: 12 Jan 2024

Resumen

Definición

Anamnesis y examen

Principales factores de diagnóstico

  • depressed mood
  • anhedonia
  • decreased energy or increased fatigability
  • suicidal ideation
  • loss of confidence or self-esteem
  • unreasonable feelings of self-reproach or excessive and inappropriate guilt
  • poor concentration
Todos los datos

Otros factores de diagnóstico

  • change in psychomotor activity
  • sleep disturbance
  • change in appetite
  • change in weight
  • obsessive/intrusive thoughts
  • significant self-harm or neglect or mistreatment of children
  • personal or family history of hypomania or mania
  • psychotic symptoms
Todos los datos

Factores de riesgo

  • history of depressed mood, depression, or anxiety
  • recent stressful life events
  • poor social support
  • discontinuation of psychopharmacologic treatments
  • sleep deprivation
  • socioeconomic difficulties
  • postpartum hypomania
  • personality traits
  • pregnancy- and delivery-related complications
  • age less than 16 years
  • familial and genetic factors
  • physical, psychological, or sexual abuse by partner during pregnancy
Todos los datos

Pruebas diagnósticas

Primeras pruebas diagnósticas para solicitar

  • Depression identification questions
  • Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS)
  • Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
  • Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ)
Todos los datos

Pruebas diagnósticas que deben considerarse

  • Thyroid function tests
  • CBC
  • urine drug screen
  • brain CT or MRI
Todos los datos

Algoritmo de tratamiento

Agudo

depression

Colaboradores

Autores

Arianna Di Florio, MD, PhD

Professor of Psychiatry

MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics

Cardiff University

Cardiff

UK

Adjunct Assistant Professor

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill

NC

Divulgaciones

ADF is an author of references cited in this topic.

Ian Jones, MB BS, MRCPsych, PhD

Professor of Psychiatry

MRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics

Cardiff University

Cardiff

UK

Disclosures

IJ has received grant income from Takeda. He has participated in an advisory board meeting for Sanofi and is a trustee of the Maternal Mental Health Alliance and of Action on Postpartum Psychosis. IJ is an author of references cited in this topic.

Peer reviewers

Donna Stewart, MD

Centre for Mental Health

University of Toronto

Toronto

Canada

Disclosures

DS declares that she has received author royalties from UptoDate on depression in pregnancy. DS has been an expert witness in a lawsuit related to postpartum depression.

Margaret Spinelli, MD

Associate Professor of Psychiatry

Columbia University

New York

NY

Disclosures

MS declares that she has no competing interests.

Anne-Laure Sutter, MD, PhD

Head of the Perinatal Psychiatry Network

University Department of Adult Psychiatry

CH Charles Perrens

Bordeaux

France

Disclosures

ALS declares that she has no competing interests.

Peer reviewer acknowledgements

BMJ Best Practice topics are updated on a rolling basis in line with developments in evidence and guidance. The peer reviewers listed here have reviewed the content at least once during the history of the topic.

Disclosures

Peer reviewer affiliations and disclosures pertain to the time of the review.

References

Our in-house evidence and editorial teams collaborate with international expert contributors and peer reviewers to ensure that we provide access to the most clinically relevant information possible.

Key articles

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. ACOG clinical practice guideline no. 4: screening and diagnosis of mental health conditions during pregnancy and postpartum. Jun 2023 [internet publication].Full text

National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (UK). Antenatal and postnatal mental health: clinical management and service guidance. Feb 2020 [internet publication].Full text

American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. ACOG clinical practice guideline no. 5: treatment and management of mental health conditions during pregnancy and postpartum. Jun 2023 [internet publication].Full text

Dennis CL, Dowswell T. Psychosocial and psychological interventions for preventing postpartum depression. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2013 Feb 28;(2):CD001134.Full text  Abstract

Reference articles

A full list of sources referenced in this topic is available to users with access to all of BMJ Best Practice.
  • Differentials

    • Minor mood disorder (postpartum blues or "baby blues")
    • Postpartum (puerperal) psychosis
    • Obsessive compulsive disorder
    More Differentials
  • Guidelines

    • Screening for depression and suicide risk in adults
    • Treatment and management of mental health conditions during pregnancy and postpartum
    More Guidelines
  • Patient information

    Postpartum depression

    Depression in adults: questions to ask your doctor

    More Patient information
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