Perinatal psychiatry

Perinatal psychiatric disorders are common and can result in significant suffering for women and their families, indeed suicide is a leading cause of maternal death. The severest form of postpartum mood disorder, puerperal psychosis, follows approximately 1 in 1000 deliveries. Women with a history of bipolar disorder or who have suffered a previous severe postpartum episode are at a many hundredfold increased risk, and their identification in the antenatal period is a key aspect of management. Decisions regarding the use of psychotropic medication in pregnancy must be made following a full risk:benefit analysis. Risks of taking many medications remain unknown but include teratogenic effects, withdrawal or toxic symptoms in the newborn and long-term developmental effects. However, these must be balanced against the risks of untreated mental illness and the risk of recurrence from stopping or switching well-established and efficacious medications. More data is clearly needed to inform the difficult choices regarding medication that women with severe mental illness are forced to make in regard to pregnancy.