Don't Miss Maternal Depression After Delivery.

ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Despite attention-grabbing headlines such as those seen after Andrea Yates drowned her five young children this June shortly after giving birth, the problem of postpartum depression remains underappreciated and often overlooked.

At least 1 in 10--and in some populations 1 in 4--women will experience some degree of depression following delivery, Dr. Carol C. Coulson said at the annual Southern Obstetric and Gynecologic Seminar.

Yet in one study, more than 70% of patients who said they had experienced depressive symptoms after delivery never sought or received help. That suggests that if physicians aren't asking about postpartum depression, they aren't finding out about it, said Dr. Coulson of the Mountain Area Health Education Center in Asheville, N.C.

There are a number of things physicians can do to improve the diagnosis and treatment of postpartum depression, Dr. Coulson explained.

First, educate patients in the prepartum period about the risks and signs of depression. Also, consider routinely seeing patients earlier than the traditional 6-week visit, and administer the postpartum depression scale.

There are three main types of postpartum depression, including "the blues," postpartum depressive disorder, and postpartum psychosis, Dr. Coulson noted.

The postpartum blues affect 50%-80% of mothers in the early postpartum period. The condition, which usually begins between the 1st and 5th postpartum day, is characterized by mild symptoms of fatigue, tearfulness, insomnia, irritability, inability to concentrate, and depressed affect. These symptoms usually resolve completely within 10 days with reassurance.