The first pill specifically targeted to treat postpartum depression could be hitting the market in the next month.
The medication, Zurzuvae (zuranolone), was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in August. It is the first medication that women can take at home to treat postpartum depression (PPD).
The treatment is very needed. Mental health issues, including suicide and substance abuse, were the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths from 2017 through 2019, accounting for 23% of maternal mortality cases.
And the number of women who died in childbirth or in the first weeks after delivery significantly increased in the United States from 2020 to 2021. In 2020, nearly 24 women died for every 100,000 babies born. The following year nearly 33 women died for every 100,000 babies born. That number was especially high for Black women, with nearly 70 maternal deaths per 100,000 babies born.
Medication Provided Quick Relief in Trial
The clinical trial for zuranolone, which is manufactured by Sage Pharamceuticals, showed the drug worked quickly compared to traditional antidepressants.
“While standard antidepressant medications can help with symptoms, they may take two to eight weeks to work,” Katrina Furey, a psychiatrist at Yale School of Medicine, said in an interview posted on the health network’s site. “The advantages of zuranolone are that it takes about three days to work, and you only need to take it for two weeks.”
Even though the medication is only taken for two weeks, the clinical trial found that women who had taken the drug reported significant improvement in symptoms after 45 days. In other words, the positive effects of zuranolone lasted well beyond the treatment period.
Furey also said the medication’s greater success in treating PPD compared to traditional depression “suggests that the biology of postpartum depression is completely different from major depression, even if the symptoms are similar.”
Before this pill, the only medication approved for postpartum depression required an IV infusion that takes over two days to complete.