Psychosis In New-Mums

By Super

Wednesday, May 30, 2012, 11:23

According to a new study, first-time mothers fall at a greater risk of psychosis following the birth of their babies. The case is observed even in those mothers who have never had any previous record of mental illness.

Mostly the symptoms involve post-partum phase where the new mum faces 'baby-blues' and a mild depression in the weeks to follow. Generally the psychosis illness occurs when the individual is unable to differentiate between reality and illusions, this however, is rare.

In the new study, Unnur Valdimarsdottir, of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues investigated the rates of psychosis in first-time mothers up to 90 days after the birth of their child, and a number of possible risk factors for psychosis, in Sweden between 1983 and 2000.

In their study, the researchers pointed out three quarters of a million first-time mothers in Sweden and discovered that 892 of them had to be admitted for Psychosis within the first 90 days of giving birth. The study also revealed that the risk of psychosis increased with age with 35 year old women facing the risk twice than a 19 year old mum.

Factors linked to less risk of psychosis in the population of women studied were higher infant birth weight and maternal diabetes; other factors, including smoking and not living with the infant''s father, had no or limited impact on the risk of psychosis during the postpartum period.

The study therefore concluded that there remains a specific risk of new-mums in developing psychosis in the early stages soon after birth.