Medical Minute: Blood Test May Revolutionize Postpartum Depression Diagnosis, Treatment

Postpartum depression, a mental health condition affecting millions of new mothers, may soon be easier to diagnose and treat, thanks to a new blood test.

Currently, postpartum depression is diagnosed through observation and typically treated with talk therapy and antidepressants.

But researchers at Johns Hopkins are developing a first-of-its-kind blood test that could identify the condition even before a mother gives birth.

Brooke Wiesner, mother of three, struggled with postpartum depression after her youngest daughter, Mave, was born.

“I didn't feel about her the way I felt like I should have," she said. "It was all I could do to get out of bed. I was having some pretty significant suicidal ideations.” Despite being prescribed antidepressants, nothing initially worked for her.

The new test examines blood samples for extracellular vesicles (EVs) — tiny sacs carrying genetic material from the brain.

Abnormal levels of specific RNA molecules in these EVs are linked to brain disorders like postpartum depression, schizophrenia, epilepsy, and addiction. These RNA molecules could serve as biological markers for diagnosing such conditions earlier than ever.

“If we can figure out which people are going to respond to what drugs, that’d be a big deal,” a researcher said.

Scientists caution that their findings might be limited to postpartum depression, as they only studied women. Future research aims to find similar markers for autism spectrum disorder using lab-grown brain cells.