Study Reveals Link Between Controlling Childbirth Pain and Lower Risk of Postpartum Depression

Researchers found that controlling pain during and after childbirth might lower the risk of postpartum depression, a new Chinese study reveals.

Researchers at the Northwestern University found that women who had pain control with epidural anesthesia during a vaginal delivery had a much lower risk of postpartum depression as compared to women who didn't take epidural.

The clinical depression that affects women after childbirth is called postpartum depression, also known as postnatal depression. It affects 9-16 percent of new moms in the first months after childbirth. The symptoms of this depression last longer and are very severe.

The new study is one of the first studies to evaluate the association between pain during labor and postpartum depression.

"Maximizing pain control in labor and delivery with your obstetrician and anesthesia team might help reduce the risk of postpartum depression," said Katherine Wisner, M.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and obstetrics and gynecology. "It's a huge omission that there has been almost nothing in postpartum depression research about pain during labor and delivery and postpartum depression. There is a well-known relationship between acute and chronic pain and depression."

The researchers found that women who had epidural to seek relief from childbirth pain had nearly 14 percent increased risk of developing depression at six weeks post partum as compared to 35 percent among those who did not use any pain relief.

Also, breastfeeding was more common among those who had epidural to control pain than those who did not.

"These findings are quite exciting and further research should be done to confirm them, especially in women at increased risk of postpartum depression and in women from other cultures," Wisner said.

The researchers suggest that women who suffer with chronic pain for one or two months after delivery should be screened for depression.

The study was reported in Anesthesia & Analgesia.