Women taking a common type of antidepressant drug face a significantly higher risk of excessive bleeding after giving birth, according to research by the UBC Faculty of Medicine.
Using health records of women who gave birth in British Columbia between 2002 and 2011, the researchers found that use of selective serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) in the last month of pregnancy increased the likelihood of postpartum hemorrhage by 1.6 times, compared to those not taking SNRIs. Postpartum hemorrhage is a major cause of complications during childbirth.