New ‘miracle’ drug for postpartum depression nears approval

A new “miracle” drug that attacks one of the most common complications of pregnancy – postpartum depression – is one more step to be on the shelves, according to a new study released Wednesday.

Scientists at Northwell Health’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research just completed a clinical trial examining the new drug Zuranolone and found that more than half of participants saw complete remission from their clinical depression at the end of the trial period. .

The neuroactive steroid pill also worked much faster than typical antidepressants given to women with the condition – trial participants showed “immediate and lasting results” after just three days of taking the drug, Northwell Health said. .

“Postpartum depression affects one in eight women and there is currently only one drug approved by the FDA for these women,” said Dr. Kristina Deligiannidis, New York-based principal investigator on the trial, to the Post in a press release.

“For too long, women with PPD have been ashamed or not sure how to get the help they need. With further clinical trials and the potential approval of this drug, these women will have help literally at their fingertips. ”

Like other mental health issues that only affect women, postpartum depression – an illness as old as childbirth – has long been under-studied and under-studied and often goes undiagnosed despite the devastating effects it can have on both mother and child.

Women with postpartum depression have difficulty bonding with or caring for their children and are often overwhelmed by feelings of loss. desperation, anxiety and overwhelming beliefs on their perceived inability to be a mother.

In severe cases, postpartum depression can lead to suicide and in more extreme cases, women with the disease felt pressured to hurt or kill their baby.

Without intervention, PPD can persist for years.

When Tonya Fulwider was a young mother in 1998, she didn’t realize she was suffering from postpartum depression until her daughter was six months old.

“Each step felt like walking in concrete,” recalls Fulwider, 47.

“People talk about the blues, they feel blue. It’s way too bright. Depression is colorless, it’s black, there is nothing there, there is no hope there and when you have a beautiful new baby it was just awful.

Fulwider, who has since dedicated her life to helping women with PPD after starting the nonprofit POEM, said her pediatrician or OB-GYN never asked her how she was doing. When she finally spoke to her primary care doctor, he “threw me a script” and fired her.

“The reality of mom’s mental health being so vital is because she is usually the source of all care, she is usually the one that not only provides the diaper changes and feeding, but also the song. sung, the hugs, the warm embrace and babies need that too, ”said Fulwider.

“And if she’s depressed… it’s just torture, it’s fighting, you fight to do whatever you have to do and it’s just not fair to mom.”

The Feinstein Institutes’ Zuranolone trial, part of the drug’s pivotal Phase 3 study, looked at 151 patients randomized to 33 centers in the United States in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

On day 15 of taking the drug, 45% of the women were in remission, compared to 23% in the placebo group, and on day 45, 53% were in complete remission, compared to 30% who received the placebo.

Fulwider said she is thankful that a new drug may be on the market soon, as women with PPD need every option they can get.

“Although we can talk all day about mental health, it is health and it is 100% true, it is much more difficult, it is a much more complicated process and it is even more complicated to get the right kind of care, especially for moms, ”Fulwider explained.

“We are telling moms to get out of this and we have to reverse this script.”