Feinberg
Northwestern Medicine | Northwestern University | Faculty Profiles

News Center

  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Releases
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Menu
  • Categories
    • Campus News
    • Disease Discoveries
    • Clinical Breakthroughs
    • Education News
    • Scientific Advances
  • Press Releases
  • Media Coverage
  • Podcasts
  • Editor’s Picks
    • COVID-19
    • Cardiology
    • Cancer
    • Neurology and Neuroscience
    • Aging and Longevity
    • Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
  • News Archives
  • About Us
    • Media Contact
    • Share Your News
    • News Feeds
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
Home » Research Will Determine Optimal Antidepressant Drug Doses During Pregnancy
Campus News

Research Will Determine Optimal Antidepressant Drug Doses During Pregnancy

By Nora DunneSep 14, 2015
Share
Facebook Twitter Email
Katherine Wisner, MD
Katherine Wisner, MD, Norman and Helen Asher Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, is one of the principal investigators of the newly funded study.

A multidisciplinary team of Northwestern Medicine scientists has received a five-year, $3.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to determine the optimal drug doses for treating pregnant women with depression across the changing physiological landscape of their pregnancies.

Depression is a common complication of pregnancy, but healthcare providers don’t have comprehensive evidence on the most effective doses to treat the disorder with antidepressants. In the new study, funded by the NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), investigators will develop guidelines that lay out the best doses across pregnancy and after birth for widely prescribed antidepressants called serotonin selective reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

“Pregnant women get sick and sick women get pregnant. Providing them with adequate treatment is critically important,” said principal investigator Katherine L. Wisner, MD, Norman and Helen Asher Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences.

She said the default for many years was to avoid prescribing medications to expectant mothers to prevent any chance of birth defects due to drug exposure. But it’s now known that treating illnesses that affect a woman’s health and ability to function, such as hypertension, epilepsy, depression and bipolar disorder, is important for the well-being of both the mother and fetus, said Dr. Wisner, who has a secondary appointment in Obstetrics and Gynecology. She also directs the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depressive Disorders.

Catherine Stika, MD, associate professor of clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Alfred George, Jr., MD, chair of Pharmacology, are also principal investigators of the study.
Catherine Stika, MD, associate professor of clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Alfred George, Jr., MD, chair of Pharmacology, are also principal investigators of the study.

“Now we need to understand how medications are metabolized at different points in pregnancy,” she said. “For example, plasma concentrations of most antidepressants decline in the third trimester and women may relapse into depression. If we’re going to write a prescription, we need to be responsible for making sure the drug does the maximum amount of good by reducing the disease burden.”

With fellow principal investigators Catherine Stika, MD, associate professor of clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Alfred George, Jr., MD, chair of Pharmacology, Dr. Wisner will oversee the study’s three parts: A clinical project will assess the safety and toxicity of drugs throughout pregnancy and into postpartum. A translational project will investigate how variability in genes involved with the metabolism of SSRIs impacts plasma concentrations and pharmacodynamics during pregnancy. Then, a pilot project will look at infant outcomes.

Building robust medication guidelines for pregnant women is a priority for policymakers. For example, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has an initiative called “Treating for Two” and the Food and Drug Administration recently introduced new labeling requirements for drugmakers that will help healthcare providers decide on safe treatment options for pregnant patients.

“Our team is going to be providing the evidence base to make future policy decisions,” Dr. Wisner said.

The new study is funded by NIH NICHD grant 1U54HD085601-01. Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences (NUCATS) Institute resources including biostatistics support such as statistical analysis and database design, and clinical research unit services such as research nursing services, blood draws, processing, storage and inpatient weekend hours were utilized in support of the grant application.

Pharmacology Psychiatry Research Women's Health
Share. Facebook Twitter Email

Related Posts

Medical Education Day Celebrates Mentorship and Equity

Sep 29, 2023

Mapping Neural Activity Patterns and Odor Perception  

Sep 28, 2023

Lloyd-Jones Announces He is Stepping Down as Chair of Preventive Medicine

Sep 27, 2023

Comments are closed.

Latest News

Medical Education Day Celebrates Mentorship and Equity

Sep 29, 2023

Mapping Neural Activity Patterns and Odor Perception  

Sep 28, 2023

Lloyd-Jones Announces He is Stepping Down as Chair of Preventive Medicine

Sep 27, 2023

Small, Implantable Device Could Sense and Treat Cancer

Sep 26, 2023

Gene Linked to Glioblastoma Stem Cell Self-Renewal and Immunosuppression

Sep 26, 2023
  • News Center Home
  • Categories
  • Press Release
  • Media Coverage
  • Editor’s Picks
  • News Archives
  • About Us
Flickr Photos
20230927_MedEdDay_Sargent_6
20230927_MedEdDay_Sargent_3
20230927_MedEdDay_Sargent_1
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_Patel_2
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_Patel_1
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_Panko_1
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_4
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_3
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_2
20230927_MedEdDay_Posters_1
20230927_MedEdDay_Awards_6
20230927_MedEdDay_Awards_5

Northwestern University logo

Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

RSS Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Flickr YouTube Instagram
Copyright © 2023 Northwestern University
  • Contact Northwestern University
  • Disclaimer
  • Campus Emergency Information
  • Policy Statements

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.