title: Puerperal psychoses: a clinical case study with follow-up.
abstract: Thirty cases of post-partum psychotic disorders occurred between 1973 and 1987 and hospitalized at the Psychiatric Ward of Florence University were studied and followed up. A structured diagnostic interview was used, which explored DSM Ill-R diagnosis both for mood disorders and for psychotic features. The psychotic symptoms had started within 8 weeks of parturition in all cases. Only 36.7% of the patients showed no subsequent pathology after the puerperal symptoms. The diagnoses, both at the index episode and at the follow-up, revealed a great predominance of mood disorders and the absence of schizophrenia. The follow-up survey showed a greater proportion of bipolar disorders than it appeared at the puerperal onset of the disease. A high frequency of puerperal psychotic relapses has also occurred after subsequent deliveries during the follow-up period.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento Scienze Neurologiche e Psichiatriche, Università di Firenze, Florence, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Benvenuti
authors.forename: P L
authors.initials: PL
authors.lastname: Cabras
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Servi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rosseti
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Marchetti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pazzagli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D012008:Recurrence; D012307:Risk Factors