Recommendations of the Polish Psychiatric Association for treatment of affective disorders in women of childbearing age. Part I: Treatment of depression

Treatment of depressive disorders in women of childbearing age requires special attention due to the possibility of planned or unplanned pregnancy and the specificity of mood disorders associated with the perinatal period. A doctor who treats depression in a woman of childbearing age should openly discuss with the patient her sexuality and the possibility of becoming pregnant. A psychiatrist may encounter various problems, such as: a therapeutic decision regarding a woman suffering from recurrent depression who receives preventive or maintenance antidepressant medication and becomes pregnant or plans to conceive; proceedings in the case of a depressive episode in a woman who is already pregnant; proceedings in the case of postpartum depression; antidepressant treatment in the context of breastfeeding. The recommendations were prepared by the working group of the Polish Psychiatric Association based on the latest worldwide standards as well as opinions and consensus of experts. The recommendations provide general principles of therapeutic approach and include data on the safety of antidepressants.