According to an Arizona State University report, Latinas are 37 percent more likely than other groups to suffer from postpartum depression, which can occur after giving birth, having a miscarriage, or still birth. For women who experience postpartum depression, the symptoms are far more severe than your run-of-the-mill “baby blues.”  According to the National Library of Medicine, postpartum depression symptoms can include:

• Social withdrawal
• Thoughts of harming the new infant
• Lethargy
• Mood swings
• Substance abuse
• Intense feelings of anger or sadness
• Difficulty concentrating
• Sleeping too much or too little

The illness affects roughly 15 percent of all new mothers in the United States. Unfortunately, many women suffer from the condition in silence, afraid to share the emotional turmoil they are experiencing for fear of judgment. But what if you could predict whether you will experience postpartum depression or not. Would you want to know?

That’s the very question that doctors are grappling with, after researchers at  Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine  recently uncovered two genes that may be able to predict which women would develop postpartum depression with 85 percent accuracy. The findings were reported in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.

While the genes, called TTC9B and HP1BP3, are relatively unknowns, scientists believe that they are somehow involved in activity in the brain’s hippocampus, which regulates mood. Both genes seem to be “reactive to estrogen,” says Zachary Kaminsky, a researcher at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore who worked on the study.

One theory is that women who develop postpartum depression may respond differently to the big shifts in estrogen and other hormones that happen during pregnancy and after childbirth. Currently, doctors diagnose postpartum depression through a screening questionnaire, but if it’s proven that genes are at play, a blood test that could help spot pregnant women who are vulnerable to postpartum depression may not be completely out of the realm of possibility. ”This is a first step, but I think we’re pretty far off from having a blood test,” says Dr. Kimberly Yonkers, a professor of psychiatry and obstetrics and gynecology at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn.

And then there’s the question again of whether a postpartum-spotting blood test even be beneficial to pregnant women? ”You may unnecessarily worry some women,” notes Yonkers. But “information is power,” counters Dr. Kaminsky. 

While doctors have not been able to pinpoint a singular reason for postpartum depression, there are several factors that come into play, says the Mayo Clinic. And they include:

• Hormonal changes. A dramatic drop in hormones (estrogen and progesterone) in your body may contribute to postpartum depression. Other hormones produced by your thyroid gland also may drop sharply — which can leave you feeling tired, sluggish and depressed. Changes in your blood volume, blood pressure, immune system and metabolism can contribute to fatigue and mood swings.
• Sleep deprivation.  New moms who are sleep deprived may have trouble handling even minor problems and they might become anxious about caring for their newborn as a result. And if those emotional feelings are combined with a struggle with your sense of identity, the mother might may feel she’s lost control over this area of her life.  Any of these factors can contribute to postpartum depression.
• Lifestyle influences. Many lifestyle factors can lead to postpartum depression, including a demanding baby or older siblings, difficulty breast-feeding, financial problems, and lack of support from your partner or other loved ones.

So while a blood test may be far off, for some women, knowing they are at risk of postpartum depression can offer a chance to minimize that risk by ensuring they are set up with support from their partner, family and friends. 

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