Zuranolone Provides Hope for Postpartum Depression
Highlights:
- Postpartum depression affects a significant number of women and often goes undiagnosed and untreated
- Researchers developed a steroidal drug known as Zuranolone that regulates neuron activity in mood and behavior-related networks
- In the phase 3 trial, women who took Zuranolone showed significant and sustained improvements in their symptoms for four to six weeks
Postpartum depression often is left undiagnosed and worse, untreated. A recent trial is hopeful that a new drug could be the answer.
A team of Sage Therapeutics and Biogen medical scientists led by Dr. Kristina Deligiannidis from the Institute of Behavioral Science at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research in New York discovered promising results from a new drug designed to alleviate the symptoms of postpartum depression.
‘Zuranolone, an oral pill shows promise against postpartum depression in its phase 3 trial. #Depression #Zuranolone’
The researchers performed a phase III clinical trial with postpartum women in their study, which was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry (1✔).
What is Postpartum Depression?
Postpartum depression is a mood disorder that affects a large number of women. Its symptoms might include intense exhaustion, a bad mood, a loss of interest and concentration, and a desire to commit suicide.Previous research has revealed that one in every seven women suffers from postpartum depression (2✔). There is now just one medicine available, brexanolone under the trade name Zulresso. This is given intravenously over three days and necessitates a hospital stay, which is unsuitable for most new moms.
What is Zuranolone?
The study team produced a medication called Zuranolone in this latest endeavor; it may be taken in tablet form for numerous days in a row-typically 15, in this case.Notably, the medication is not an antidepressant; rather, it is a steroid that acts to alleviate symptoms by regulating neuron activity in networks involved in mood and behavior. After two weeks, the patient discontinues use and consults with their doctor.
The researchers selected 170 women who had recently given birth and had previously been diagnosed with severe postpartum depression to examine the drug's efficacy. Half of the participants received the medicine, while the other half received a placebo.
Zuranolone: A Ray of Hope for Moms with Postpartum Depression
The researchers discovered that while all of the women in the trial saw improvements in their symptoms, only those who took the medicine showed significant improvements, and only those women experienced sustained improvements for four to six weeks.It is probable that the women who got a placebo noticed improvements in their symptoms as a result of other sorts of care they received, such as break from child care. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is studying the medicine and will determine whether or not to approve it.
References:
- Zuranolone for the Treatment of Postpartum Depression - (https:pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37491938/)
- Postpartum Depression - (https:www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK519070/)
Source: Medindia
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Dr. Krishanga. (2023, July 29). Zuranolone Provides Hope for Postpartum Depression. Medindia. Retrieved on Jan 20, 2025 from https://www.medindia.net/news/healthwatch/zuranolone-provides-hope-for-postpartum-depression-212881-1.htm.
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