Jennifer L. Payne, MD
In a recent interview, Jennifer L. Payne, MD, a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, discussed the prospects for a newly-approved drug called zuranolone to have a positive impact on women suffering from postpartum depression.
Postpartum depression is a major depressive episode that occurs shortly after childbirth for some mothers. The debilitating mental state is thought to be caused by hormonal changes and the stress of becoming a mother and can present danger to the mother and infant. Dr. Payne says the new drug therapy option is exciting because it “works within days and has a high response rate of about 70%, and a 50% remission rate.” The new treatment also brings hope to patients because it places the problem of postpartum depression into public view, may lead to other antidepressant treatments for all types of depression, and works rapidly, needing to be taking for only 14 days.
Read the full interview with Dr. Payne in UVA Today.