Depression in Men can Lower Pregnancy Chances

Depression in men is associated with lower pregnancy chances than men who did not have major depression, especially in couples who are being treated for infertility.

Depression in men was found to be linked to lower pregnancy chances among infertile couples. Men who had major depression were 60 percent less likely to have a baby than those who did not have major depression.

On the other hand, //depression in the female partner was not found to influence the rate of birth.

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Children born to mothers who struggled with depression during pregnancy also have a slightly increased risk of depression.

‘Male depression has a more significant influence on pregnancy success, as it can lower the chances of pregnancy.’

In addition, intake of a class of antidepressants known as non-selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (non-SSRIs) was also linked to a higher risk of early pregnancy loss among females being treated for infertility, the study appearing in the journal Fertility and Sterility, noted.

However, SSRIs, another class of antidepressants, were not linked to pregnancy loss. Neither depression in the female partner nor the use of any other class of antidepressant were linked to lower pregnancy rates.

"Our study provides infertility patients and their physicians with new information to consider when making treatment decisions," said Esther Eisenberg, at National Institutes of Health's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) in Maryland, US.

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Citing previous studies, the authors noted that 41 per cent of women seeking fertility treatments have symptoms of depression.

Another study of men seeking in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments reported that nearly 50 percent experienced depression.

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Researchers from University of Carolina found that women who have suffered eating disorders carry a greater risk of depression during pregnancy.

For the study, the team analysed data for 1,650 women and 1,608 men to evaluate the potential influence of depression in couples seeking non-IVF treatments.

Among the women, 5.96 percent were rated as having active major depression, compared to 2.28 percent of the men.

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Latinas’ and African-American women are less likely to be screened or treated for perinatal depression, revealed study. Perinatal depression occurs during pregnancy or the first year after giving birth.

Women using non-SSRIs were roughly 3.5 times as likely to have a first-trimester pregnancy loss, compared to those not using antidepressants.

Source-IANS