Postpartum depression (PPD) treatment has a new option with zuranolone, a medication that offers a faster onset of action compared to traditional antidepressants, according to a recent study.
Zuranolone (Zurzuvae; Sage Therapeutics and Biogen) provides clinicians with a meaningfully different counseling conversation for PPD, said Joy Baker, MD, an OB-GYN with Wellstar West Georgia Medical Center in LaGrange, Georgia.
Treatment Outcomes
In a phase 4, prospective, real-world study of the oral treatment, 191 participants completed all 3 Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale assessments, with more than half reaching remission by day 15 (55%), rising to 67% by day 45.
Across the full cohort, mean EPDS scores fell by 8.91 points at day 15 and 10.24 points at day 45 (both P < .001), with improvements observed across every severity group.
Participants with moderate PPD saw mean reductions of 8.59 points at day 15 and 9.62 points at day 45, while those with severe PPD saw reductions of 10.89 and 12.04 points, respectively.
Speed of Relief
Baker emphasized that speed of relief is central to how she frames treatment for new mothers, with most patients reporting a change in symptoms or a decrease in symptoms by days three to five.
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“This is a 14-day oral treatment with fast trajectory, so you don’t need to wait weeks or months to feel a difference. Most patients report a change in symptoms or a decrease in symptoms by days three to five,” she said.
She contrasted this trajectory with other antidepressant therapies, noting that patients often tell her, “I’m not 100 yet, but I can see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
“I tell patients you may feel better before you even finish the 2 weeks, and that benefit tends to build rather than fade over the following weeks,” Baker said.
“Regardless of baseline PPD severity, participants treated with zuranolone experienced clinically meaningful symptom improvement by end of treatment (day 15) that was maintained through day 45,” the authors of the study wrote.
For more information on zuranolone, visit the Contemporary OB/GYN website, which published an article on the interim results of the study.
Study References
The study’s findings were presented at the Postpartum Support International Conference, and a poster of the study is available, citing Baker LJ, Nagle-Yang S, Bian B, et al. as the authors.
