One-Third of patients prescribed anti-depressants receive proper follow-up

Over at Postpartum Progress I read an article about a study that found that only 1/3 of patients prescribed anti-depressants receive proper follow-up. In the January 2010 issue of Psychiatric Services, research concluded "Patients receiving their initial prescription from psychiatrists were nearly five times as likely as patients receiving their initial prescription from primary care providers to receive guideline-concordant follow-up care." There were 4,102 patients reviewed and only 31% received follow-up visits keeping with accepted guidelines.

Removing ads

I've made the decision to remove the ads from my blog. This type of blog, I believe, should be free of advertising.

Chinese Postpartum period

There's an interesting study posted at Postpartum Progress about the Chinese custom of a month of seclusion for postpartum mothers. A study in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of Affective Disorders looked at the Chinese custom of "confinement" or "doing the month." Researchers looked at 16 different studies and concluded that there was little consistent evidence that the practice of confinement reduced postpartum depression.

I have been intrigued by the practice of other cultures of confinement, wondering if it helped to prevent postpartum depression. In our culture there seems to be such a rush to return back to normal life. Chores need to be done and older children need to be taken care of. Visitors often come & go eager to see the new baby. The postpartum period is stressful and quite and adjustment to make. However upon thinking confinement, I am reminded of the story Yellow Wallpaper that I read in college.

The Chinese call it Zuo Yuezi. New mothers rest at home, often under the care of their mother-in-law. They are supposed to eat certain foods and herbs, dictated by traditional Chinese medicine. There's an interesting article here that tells about the custom. There's another article here written by someone who traveled from New York to Taiwan for the purpose of going to a Chinese postpartum recovery center. There were maternity coaches to teach infant care & breastfeeding, and nutritional meals are tailor made to the mother's needs. New mothers stay at the center from a few days up to the traditional month. It sound's nice, but I can't imagine how expensive that must be. Here, in the United States, we have postpartum doulas, but I don't know many who can afford to pay for postpartum help.