Association between suicide attempts and pregnancy

Pregnant and recently pregnant women can be vulnerable to mental illness due to shifts in hormone levels,Dr.Richard Silver,chairman of obstetrics and gynecology at North Shore University Health System in Chicago,said.Canadian researchers found that5percent of deaths during pregnancy or the first year after pregnancy were due to suicide.Methods This article is a review article and based on some articles in South Africa and UK.Research on suicide attempts during pregnancy is limited as these are considered to be rare in the perinatal period. Clinical and sociodemographic data of pregnant suicide attempters were extracted. Results The standardised mortality ratio for suicide during pregnancy was calculated to be0.05of all pregnant women.2%of UK’s women,died during the perinatal period and4%died in the perinatal period by suicide between the ages of20-35years. Conclusion Women during pregnancy have a low risk of suicide despite their high rate of psychiatric morbidity. women who died from suicide during the perinatal period were more likely to have received a diagnosis of depression compared with women who died by suicide but who were not in the perinatal period. They were also less likely to be receiving any active treatment at the time of death. Message for policymakers The research points to the importance of closely monitoring mental-health in women during pregnancy and afterward,when many women experience postpartum depression.As a result better screening and prevention strategies are needed.

Keywords:

Pregnancy , suicide , depression