A new pill, which you can take at home, has been shown to improve the symptoms of postpartum depression in a study.Photo:Getty
Getty
Zuranolone, a 14-day neuroactive steroid pill, showed “rapid, clinically meaningful improvements in depressive symptoms at measured time points,” according to a release fromThe Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research at Northwell Health.
“Treatment with zuranolone compared with placebo resulted in statistically significant improvement in depressive symptoms at day 15,” according to theAmerican Journal of Psychiatry,which published the findings from the latest phase of the study on Wednesday.
“The greatest benefits of zuranolone are its rapid antidepressant effects, short at-home treatment course and generally well-tolerated side effect profile,” Dr. Kristina Deligiannidis, a professor at the Institute of Behavioral Science at theFeinstein Institutes for Medical Researchin New York, and lead author of the study, toldCNN.
About 1 in 8 women in the United States suffer from postpartum depression, according to the CDC.Getty
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About 1 in 8 women in the United States experiences postpartum depression,according to the CDC, which notes that the rate of depression diagnoses is increasing.
That was the case for Queens, New York, mom Sahar McMahon, 39, who participated in the study and received zuranolone, not the placebo.
She told CNN that after the birth of her second daughter, “I never wanted to hurt myself. I just was existing. There were points where my kids would be screaming. I would leave them screaming in the living room. I’d go in my room, close the door, scream into a pillow, and then I’d think, ‘What are we doing this for?’” she said. “My whole thought process was very pessimistic, and that’s not who I am at all.”
But when McMahon started taking the drug, she told CNN, “I woke up and I’m like, ‘OK.’ I immediately just started feeling more like me.”
The FDA has given the drugpriority review status, and is expected to make a decision on its approval on August 5.
source: people.com
