Rituximab for Treatment of Refractory Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis in a Pediatric Patient.

Anti-N-methyl d-aspartate receptor (anti-NMDAR) encephalitis is a devastating disease that is increasingly being identified in both children and adults with psychosis, language disturbances, behavioral changes, and motor deficits. Currently no consensus guidelines exist for the optimal management of patients with this disease, although intravenous immune globulin (IVIG) therapy is often considered first-line pharmacotherapy. We present a case of an otherwise healthy 4 year-old-child who presented with seizures, loss of age-appropriate language skills, and behavioral changes, in whom anti-NMDAR was subsequently diagnosed. After marked intolerance to corticosteroid therapy and inadequate clinical response to IVIG, immunotherapy with rituximab was initiated. The patient had rapid return of language skills and complete resolution of dyskinesia after a single rituximab infusion, with no residual deficits at her 6-month follow-up visit. Early intervention in patients with anti-NMDAR encephalitis is of paramount importance for successful outcomes and baseline recovery. Only approximately half of patients respond to first-line immunotherapy, necessitating further evaluation of alternative therapies and the development of a treatment algorithm for practitioners. This case report builds upon previous findings illustrating rapid symptom resolution after rituximab infusion and adds to the available body of evidence for management of pediatric patients with anti-NMDAR.

Impact of socioeconomic deprivation on maternal perinatal mental illnesses presenting to UK general practice.

BACKGROUND: Although maternal perinatal mental illnesses commonly present to and are primarily treated in general practice, few population-based estimates of this burden exist, and the most affected socioeconomic groups of pregnant women remain unclear. AIM: To provide estimates of maternal depression, anxiety and serious mental illness (SMI) in UK general practice and quantify impacts of socioeconomic deprivation. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional analysis of prospectively recorded general practice records from a UK-wide database. METHOD: A pregnancy ending in live birth was randomly selected for every woman of childbearing age, 1994-2009. Prevalence and diagnostic overlap of mental illnesses were calculated using a combination of medical diagnoses and psychotropic drug prescriptions. Socioeconomic deprivation was assessed using multivariate logistic regression, adjusting for calendar period and pregnancy history. RESULTS: Among 116 457 women, 5.1% presented with antenatal depression and 13.3% with postnatal depression. Equivalent figures for anxiety were 2.6% and 3.7% and for SMI 1/1000 and 2/1000 women. Socioeconomic deprivation increased the risk of all mental illnesses, although this was more marked in older women. Those age 35-45 years in the most deprived group had 2.63 times the odds of antenatal depression (95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.22 to 3.13) compared with the least deprived; in women aged 15-25 years the increased odds associated with deprivation was more modest (odds ratio = 1.35, 95% CI = 1.07 to 1.70). Similar patterns were found for anxiety and SMI. CONCLUSION: Strong socioeconomic inequalities in perinatal mental illness persist with increasing maternal age. Targeting detection and effective interventions to high-risk women may reduce inequity and avoid substantial psychiatric morbidity.

Saving Mothers' Lives: Reviewing maternal deaths to make motherhood safer: 2006-2008. The Eighth Report of the Confidential Enquiries into Maternal Deaths in the United Kingdom.

In the triennium 2006-2008, 261 women in the UK died directly or indirectly related to pregnancy. The overall maternal mortality rate was 11.39 per 100,000 maternities. Direct deaths decreased from 6.24 per 100,000 maternities in 2003-2005 to 4.67 per 100,000 maternities in 2006­2008 (p = 0.02). This decline is predominantly due to the reduction in deaths from thromboembolism and, to a lesser extent, haemorrhage. For the first time there has been a reduction in the inequalities gap, with a significant decrease in maternal mortality rates among those living in the most deprived areas and those in the lowest socio-economic group. Despite a decline in the overall UK maternal mortality rate, there has been an increase in deaths related to genital tract sepsis, particularly from community acquired Group A streptococcal disease. The mortality rate related to sepsis increased from 0.85 deaths per 100,000 maternities in 2003-2005 to 1.13 deaths in 2006-2008, and sepsis is now the most common cause of Direct maternal death. Cardiac disease is the most common cause of Indirect death; the Indirect maternal mortality rate has not changed significantly since 2003-2005. This Confidential Enquiry identified substandard care in 70% of Direct deaths and 55% of Indirect deaths. Many of the identified avoidable factors remain the same as those identified in previous Enquiries. Recommendations for improving care have been developed and are highlighted in this report. Implementing the Top ten recommendations should be prioritised in order to ensure the overall UK maternal mortality rate continues to decline.

Invited commentaries on... Abortion and mental health disorders.

The finding that induced abortion is a risk factor for subsequent psychiatric disorder in some women raises important clinical and training issues for psychiatrists. It also highlights the necessity for developing evidence-based interventions for these women. P.C. / Evidence suggesting a modest increase in mental health problems after abortion does not support the prominence of psychiatric issues in the abortion debate, which is primarily moral and ethical not psychiatric or scientific. M.O. et al.

Maternal self-esteem after successful treatment for infertility.

OBJECTIVE: To [1] investigate self-esteem during pregnancy after previous infertility and [2] establish the relationship among self-esteem, anxiety during pregnancy, and parenting self-efficacy. DESIGN: Limited prospective study. SETTING: A regional infertility clinic and antenatal clinic. PATIENT(S): Seventy women who had conceived through assisted reproductive technology and 111 women who had conceived naturally. INTERVENTION(S): Measures of self-esteem, anxiety, and parenting self-efficacy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Self-esteem, anxiety, and parenting self-efficacy. RESULT(S): Women who had conceived through IVF treatment did not differ in terms of self-esteem during pregnancy from those who had conceived naturally. All of the women in the present study displayed levels of self-esteem that were within the normal range. Self-esteem increased as pregnancy progressed. Self-esteem was negatively correlated with anxiety during pregnancy. As self-esteem increased, anxiety decreased. Self-esteem at the start of pregnancy (18 weeks) and anxiety in the early stages of parenthood (6 weeks postpartum) predicted parenting self-efficacy. CONCLUSION(S): Self-esteem in the early stages of pregnancy, for both women who conceived through IVF and women who conceived naturally, is related to self-reported levels of parenting efficacy. Coaching and mentoring through antenatal clinics in the early stages of pregnancy should be tailored to incorporate advice regarding self-esteem in addition to management of pregnancy and psychological well-being.

Parenting stress in first-time mothers of twins and triplets conceived after in vitro fertilization.

OBJECTIVE: To examine psychosocial and obstetric outcomes at 1 year postpartum in first-time mothers who conceived after IVF. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: University medical center in the United Kingdom. PATIENT(S): One hundred twenty-nine mothers with a single naturally conceived birth, 95 mothers with a single IVF birth, and 36 mothers with a twin or triplet IVF birth. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): General Health Questionnaire and Parenting Stress Index. RESULT(S): Twenty-two percent of mothers of multiples had Parenting Stress Index scores indicating severe parenting stress, compared with 5% of mothers of IVF singletons (odds ratio, 5.14 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.55-16.99]) and 9% of mothers of naturally conceived singletons (odds ratio, 2.76 [95% CI, 1.03-7.4]). Mothers of multiple children conceived by IVF did not have poorer mental health but were less likely to be in paid employment at follow-up than were mothers of singletons conceived by IVF (odds ratio, 0.3 [95% CI, 0.13-0.67]) or naturally (odds ratio, 0.27 [95% CI, 0.12-0.59]). Multiple births were more premature, had lower birth weights, and had more medical complications. They were more likely to have been admitted to special care than were singletons conceived by IVF (odds ratio, 14.6 [95% CI, 5.1-42.0)] or those conceived naturally (odds ratio, 10.59 [95% CI, 3.67-30.57]) CONCLUSION(S): Clinicians should ensure that couples making decisions about embryo transfer have considered the potential psychosocial burden of a multiple birth.

Perinatal psychiatric disorders: a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality.

The Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths 1997 to 1999 finds that psychiatric disorder, and suicide in particular, is the leading cause of maternal death. Suicide accounted for 28% of maternal deaths. Women also died from other complications of psychiatric disorder and a significant minority from substance misuse. Some of the findings of the Confidential Enquiry confirm long established knowledge about postpartum psychiatric disorder. The findings highlight the severity and early onset of serious postpartum mental illness and of the risk of recurrence following childbirth faced by women with a previous history of serious mental illness either following childbirth or at other times. These findings led to the recommendation that all women should be asked early in their pregnancy about a previous history of serious psychiatric disorder and that management plans should be in place with regard to the high risk of recurrence following delivery. Other findings of the Enquiry were new and challenged some of the accepted wisdoms of obstetrics and psychiatry. It is likely that the suicide rate following delivery is not significantly different to other times in women's lives and for the first 42 days following delivery may be elevated. This calls into question the so-called 'protective effect of maternity'. The overwhelming majority of the suicides died violently, contrasting with the usual finding that women are more likely to die from an overdose of medication. Compared to other causes of maternal death, the suicides were older and socially advantaged. The Enquiry findings suggest that the risk profile for women at risk of suicide following delivery may be different to that in women at other times and in men. None of the women who died had been admitted at any time to a Mother and Baby Unit and their psychiatric care had been undertaken by General Adult Services. None of the women who died had had a previous episode correctly identified and none had had adequate plans for their proactive care. The conclusion is that there is a need for both Psychiatry and Obstetrics to acknowledge the substantial risk that women with a previous psychiatric history of serious mental illness face following delivery.