WEDNESDAY, Oct. 21, 2020 — Women with hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) have long-lasting psychological morbidity, with significantly more probable depression antenatally and postnatally, according to a study published online Oct. 13 in BMJ Open.

Nicola Mitchell-Jones, M.D., from Imperial College London, and colleagues conducted a two-point prospective case-control, multicenter survey study with antenatal and postnatal data collection involving women with HG recruited at the time of admission and controls from a low-risk antenatal clinic. A total of 106 women with HG and 108 controls were included.

The researchers found that 49 percent of cases and 6 percent of controls had probable depression antenatally (odds ratio, 14.4). Postnatally, 29 and 7 percent of cases and controls, respectively, had probable depression (odds ratio, 5.2). No direct association was identified between HG and infant bonding. Overall, 53 percent of women in the HG group and 2 percent of controls reported needing four or more weeks of sick leave (odds ratio, 60.5).

“We recommend revision of clinical guidelines to emphasize aspects of care which extend beyond management of physical symptoms, including early psychological assessment and specialist intervention with the aim to prevent some of the significant psychological and psychosocial morbidity identified during this study,” the authors write.

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