Peripartum Onset and Major Depressive Disorder: What’s the Difference?
Depression is so known, it’s compared to the common cold in regards to mental health. That’s not the exact same thing as Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), though.
To get definitions out of the way, Major Depressive Disorder, is specifically a mood disorder. General depression, while debilitating, is not as persistent. A loss of interest in once typically enjoyed activities is also a defining characteristic.
Peripartum Onset is a subtype of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), one of seven. What specifically sets it apart from the other six specifiers, being easiest to remember for exams is that, is that it is exclusively related to pregnancy/birth. Therefore, it is not its own diagnosable disorder, but rather a specifier of a preexisting one. However, what’s interesting is that it is just different enough from MDD that there is a debate as to whether or not the specifier can qualify as its own disorder.
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Starting with the DSM-5’s listed symptoms:
Significant weight loss or gain (without intention)
Sleeping too little or too much
Psychomotor agitation
Fatigue
Feelings of worthlessness and guilt
Difficulty concentrating
Suicidal ideation.
In order to be eligible for a diagnosis, the patient must be experiencing at least five of these symptoms, of which occurring for the majority of days for at least two weeks.
Obviously, being a subtype of the same disorder, Peripartum Onset will have the same symptom and similar criteria. Though, to nitpick differences, suicidal ideation is less common of a symptom here. The depressive episode has to start either during pregnancy or four weeks after birth in order to qualify as the specifier as well.
The top three treatment options for Major Depressive Disorder are psychotherapy, antidepressants such as SSRIs, and electroconvulsive therapy. The choice for which option to go through is very individualized. But, everyone follows the general rule of psychotherapy being the first choice for those under 18.
Peripartum Onset, unsurprisingly, gets pretty much all that as well: both the cognitive and biological treatment options. Though, if we are really hard pressed for details, psychotherapy is recommended first. It’s not because pregnant women are the same as children or anything; antidepressants can have a negative impact on breastfeeding.
