An estimated one in four couples in developing countries encounter difficulties trying to conceive. In the United States, more than 7 million women have undergone fertility treatments and, as a result, millions of babies have been born through in-vitro fertilization.
While many may assume that failed fertility treatments would increase a woman's risk of depression more than successful attempts that resulted in a live birth, research recently published in the journal ACTA Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica shows that the opposite may be true.
In the study, researchers from the University of Copenhagen analyzed data on 41,000 Danish women who had undergone fertility treatments. PsychCentral reports that "investigators discovered women who give birth after receiving fertility treatment are five times more likely to develop depression compared to women who don’t give birth."
Lead author Camilla Sandal Sejbaek, PhD, discusses the results in the story:
The new results are surprising because we had assumed it was actually quite the opposite. However, our study clearly shows that women who become mothers following fertility treatment have an increased risk of developing depression in the first six weeks after birth compared to women who did not have a child.
Our study has not looked at why the depression occurs, but other studies indicate that it could be caused by hormonal changes or mental factors, but we cannot say for sure. We did not find any correlation between the number of fertility treatments and the subsequent risk of depression.
Previously: Stanford-developed fertility treatment deemed a "top medical breakthrough" of the year, Ask Stanford Med: Expert in reproductive medicine responds to questions on infertility, Image of the Week: Baby born after mom receives Stanford-developed fertility treatment and NIH study suggests progestin in infertility treatment for women with PCOS may be counterproductive
Photo by Big D2112
