A new app for iPhone and iPad users has been developed in efforts to learn more about postpartum depression that could help aid advances in predicting, diagnosing, and treating the maternal disorder. Led by a research team at University of North Carolina, the app aims to gather 100,000 DNA samples from a diverse group of women and compare them to samples from women who are not affected. The team believes that the genes affecting postpartum depression show up during or shortly after pregnancy.
The app, PPD ACT, begins by asking users questions about sadness, anxiety, or feelings of panic after pregnancy to determine whether or not they have the depression. Females with high tests scores are then asked if they would like to receive a kit to submit their saliva for DNA testing. After the team has enough samples, each of the samples will be genotyped for around 600,000 genetic markers all through the genome. Those results will be compared to the results of woman who are demographically similar, have been pregnant at least two times, but have never experienced depression.
I think the initial research has been well developed not because of the questions that the app asks, but because it's an easy way for mothers to see if they suffer from postpartum depression and it even sends them a kit without them having to leave the house. I look forward to hearing about the results from this research as I'm still skeptical as to whether or not postpartum depression is linked to genetics or if it's a hormonal imbalance due to giving birth.
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