产后抑郁症通常始于产前

 　　A large new study has documented unexpected links in the timing¹ and severity of symptoms of maternal² depression, which could help mothers and doctors better anticipate and treat the condition.

　　一项新的大型研究记录了孕产妇抑郁症的发作时间与症状严重性之间出人意料的联系，这能帮助产妇和医生更好地预测和治疗这种疾病。

　　The study of more than 8,200 women from 19 centers in seven countries, published last month in Lancet Psychiatry³, found that in those with the severest symptoms — suicidal thoughts, panic, frequent crying — depression most often began during pregnancy⁴, not after giving birth, as is often assumed.

　　该研究上月发表在《柳叶刀精神病学》杂志(Lancet Psychiatry)上，它调查了七个国家19个中心的8200多名妇女。研究发现，症状最严重的抑郁症——自杀念头、恐慌、经常大哭——最常在怀孕期间开始，而非人们通常认为的分娩之后。

　　Moderately depressed⁵ women often developed their symptoms postpartum, and were more likely than severely⁶ depressed women to have experienced complications during pregnancy like pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes⁷ or hypertension.

　　中度抑郁的孕产妇通常在产后出现症状，而且与重度抑郁的孕产妇相比，她们更多地在怀孕期间经历过先兆子痫、孕期糖尿病或高血压等并发症。

　　产后抑郁症通常始于产前

　　Severely depressed women, however, more often reported complications during delivery.

　　不过，患有重度抑郁症的产妇更常在分娩时出现并发症。

　　“This is the largest study to date on postpartum depressive symptoms,” said Leah Rubin, an assistant professor in the Women’s Mental Health Research Program at University of Illinois at Chicago, a co-author of a commentary about the study. “This is definitely a first step in the right direction, knowing that depression isn’t one-size-fits-all.”

　　“这是迄今为止关于产后抑郁症状的最大型研究，”伊利诺伊大学芝加哥分校女子精神健康研究项目的助理教授利亚·鲁宾(Leah Rubin)说，他曾与人合写了一篇关于这项报告的评论文章，“知道抑郁症有多种情况，这无疑是通往正确研究方向的第一步。”

　　Ten to 20 percent of mothers experience depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder⁸ or other symptoms at some point from pregnancy to a year after giving birth. The study could aid efforts to find causes and treatments.

　　10%至20%的孕产妇在怀孕至产后一年的某个时候出现过抑郁、焦虑、躁郁或其他症状。这项研究可以帮助找到原因和治疗方法。

　　The study participants were all mothers. Some had been found to have postpartum depression by clinicians, while others were assessed via a widely used questionnaire. (Some participants fell into both groups.)

　　这项研究的参与者都是孕产妇。其中一些人的产后抑郁症是临床医生发现的，还有一些是通过被普遍采用的问卷调查评估出来的（有些参与者上述两种情况兼有）。

　　Each group could be separated into three subgroups representing women with severe, moderate, and either mild or clinically insignificant⁹ depression, said Dr. Samantha Meltzer-Brody, the director of University of North Carolina’s perinatal psychiatry program and the study’s corresponding author.

　　这项研究的通讯作者、北卡罗来纳大学围产期精神病研究项目的负责人萨曼莎·梅尔策-布罗迪博士(Samantha Meltzer-Brody)说，每组可以分成三个小组，分别代表患有重度、中度以及轻度或无临床症状的抑郁症的孕产妇。

　　Dr. Meltzer-Brody said the finding that two-thirds of severe depression began during pregnancy raised scientific questions. The biological factors at work could differ from those affecting women with classic postpartum depression, which scientists think may be linked to plummeting¹⁰ hormone¹¹ levels after delivery.

　　梅尔策-布罗迪博士说，三分之二的重度抑郁是在怀孕期间开始的，这个发现引出了一些科学问题。导致怀孕期间出现抑郁症的生物因素可能与导致典型产后抑郁症的生物因素不同，科学家们认为后者的影响因素可能是分娩后激素水平骤降。

　　She also wondered whether the finding that 60 percent of moderately depressed women reported issues like diabetes suggested that immune system problems might underlie¹² their symptoms.

　　她还说，患有中度抑郁症的产妇60%出现过糖尿病等问题。她想弄清，这一发现是否说明免疫系统问题是抑郁症的诱因。

　　Dr. Meltzer-Brody and her colleagues will begin seeking answers this year by collecting DNA¹³ from thousands of women through an international online registry.

　　梅尔策-布罗迪博士和她的同事们今年将开始寻找这个问题的答案，他们计划通过国际在线登记收集上万名妇女的DNA。

　　“Ideally, you could determine who’s at risk,” she said. “What we do now is wait for people to get sick.”

　　“如果一切顺利，我们将能确定哪些人存在风险，”她说，“我们现在在做的事就是等人们生病。”

1 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

2 maternal   

adj.母亲的，母亲般的，母系的，母方的

参考例句：

• He is my maternal uncle.他是我舅舅。
• The sight of the hopeless little boy aroused her maternal instincts.那个绝望的小男孩的模样唤起了她的母性。

3 psychiatry   

n.精神病学，精神病疗法

参考例句：

• The study appeared in the Amercian science Journal of Psychiatry.这个研究发表在美国精神病学的杂志上。
• A physician is someone who specializes in psychiatry.精神病专家是专门从事精神病治疗的人。

4 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

5 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

6 severely   

adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地

参考例句：

• He was severely criticized and removed from his post.他受到了严厉的批评并且被撤了职。
• He is severely put down for his careless work.他因工作上的粗心大意而受到了严厉的批评。

7 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

8 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。

9 insignificant   

adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的

参考例句：

• In winter the effect was found to be insignificant.在冬季，这种作用是不明显的。
• This problem was insignificant compared to others she faced.这一问题与她面临的其他问题比较起来算不得什么。

10 plummeting   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Prices are rising, falling, going up, going down, shooting up, plummeting, etc. 物价在上涨、下跌、上升、下落、猛然上涨、骤然下跌等。 来自辞典例句
• The enemy plane went plummeting into the sea. 敌机直直掉进海里。 来自辞典例句

11 hormone   

n.荷尔蒙，激素，内分泌

参考例句：

• Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body.这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。

12 underlie   

v.位于...之下，成为...的基础

参考例句：

• Technology improvements underlie these trends.科技进步将成为此发展趋势的基础。
• Many facts underlie my decision.我的决定是以许多事实为依据的。

13 DNA   

(缩)deoxyribonucleic acid 脱氧核糖核酸

参考例句：

• DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell.脱氧核糖核酸储存于细胞的细胞核里。
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code.基因突变是指DNA密码的改变。