Perinatal Mixed Affective State: Wherefore Art Thou?

Abstract

Mixed states in patients with a perinatal mood episode is seldom encountered. Lack of appropriate assessment tools could be partly responsible for this observation. The authors conducted a selective review of studies dealing with the reporting of mixed symptoms in women during the perinatal period with the intention to quantify the phenomenon. In many instances of reported postpartum depression, either a first onset or an onset in the context of bipolar disorder, mixed states were identifiable. However, the strict application of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, mixed features specifier to these episodes risks misdiagnosis.

Keywords: Bipolar disorder; Mixed affective state; Mixed depression; Perinatal period; Peripartum; Postpartum; Pregnancy; Women.