
Best Practices for Management of Mental Health in Women: Focusing on Mood Disorders Throughout the Lifespan
Program Introduction
Diagnosis and tailored treatment of menstrual cycle- and menopausal-related mood disorders are key factors in helping women live the lives they want to live.
Learning Objectives
- Appraise the influence of the reproductive stage on mood disorders and comorbid psychiatric conditions in women.
- Assess factors involved in the diagnoses of mood disorders in women and the differential diagnoses and common comorbidities.
- Summarize evidence-based approaches for diagnosing and treating mood disorders in women.
Target Audience
Psychiatrists, primary care physicians, and other health care providers
Program Description
As women experience mood symptoms throughout their reproductive years and during menopausal transitions, they often have regular contact with health care providers, providing an opportunity for treatment intervention during this complex period of a woman’s life and involving them in their own treatment program so that they can be as remitted as possible and lead a full life. It is important that clinicians know how to differentiate diagnoses and understand which treatment options are available and how to discuss them with women. In this video Drs Marlene Freeman, MD, Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and Kathryn Abel, MA, MBBS, FRCP, PhD, Professor of Psychological Medicine, University of Manchester, present 3 cases that address menstrual cycle-related mood disorders, MDD and other psychiatric disorders across the reproductive lifespan, and menopausal transition and mood symptoms and provide guideline recommendations and best practices for the management of these issues. With many treatment options available to women, from antidepressants to hormone therapy to new treatment options including neurosteroids, clinicians can help women make the best decisions for themselves and create patient-centered, individualized, evidence-based treatment plans to optimize outcomes across their lifespans.
Support Statement
Supported by an educational grant from Mylan Inc., a Viatris Company.
Learning Objective
After completing this educational activity, you should be able to:
- Appraise the influence of the reproductive stage on mood disorders and comorbid psychiatric conditions in women.
- Assess factors involved in the diagnoses of mood disorders in women and the differential diagnoses and common comorbidities
- Summarize evidence-based approaches for diagnosing and treating mood disorders in women.
Release and Expiration Dates
This CME activity was published in July 2023 and is eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ through July 31, 2024.
Statement of Need and Purpose
Depression in all stages of life is a problem that is not often reported but is likely affecting many women from menarche on. Mental health professionals, primary care physicians, and other health care providers struggle to effectively identify and manage the mental health needs of women of all ages. Major depressive disorder (MDD), depression, anxiety, and other mood disorders can come and go during the reproductive stages of a woman’s life and beyond and can often remain unaddressed, causing unnecessary suffering, multiple comorbidities, and unwanted outcomes. Early and regular assessment and treatment interventions of female patients for these diagnoses can have a significant impact on patients’ lives and that of their families. This webinar addresses the mental health needs of this patient population and offers evidence-based, guideline-directed solutions.
Unlabeled and Investigational Usage
The faculty of this educational activity may include discussions of products or devices that are not currently labeled for use by the FDA. Faculty members have been advised to disclose to the audience any reference to an unlabeled or investigational use.
No endorsement of unapproved products or uses is made or implied by coverage of these products or uses.
Please refer to the official prescribing information for each product for discussion of approved indicators, contraindications and warnings.
Review Process
The faculty members agreed to provide a balanced and evidence-based presentation and discussed the topics and CME objectives during the planning sessions. The faculty’s submitted content was validated by CME Institute staff, and the activity was evaluated for accuracy, use of evidence, and fair balance by the Chair and a peer reviewer who is without conflict of interest.
The opinions expressed herein are those of the faculty and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the CME provider and publisher or the commercial supporter
© Copyright 2023 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.
Faculty Affiliation
Kathryn Abel, MA, MBBS, FRCP, FRCPsych, PhD | Marlene P. Freeman, MD |
Financial Disclosure
The CME Institute adheres to the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME). Any individuals in a position to control the content of a continuing education activity, including faculty, content developers, reviewers, staff, and others, are required to disclose to learners the presence or absence of any relevant financial relationships with an ACCME-defined ineligible company within the preceding 24 months of the activity. The ACCME defines an “ineligible company” as one whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
The CME Institute has mitigated all relevant conflicts of interest prior to the commencement of the activity. None of the individuals involved in the content have relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies except the following:
Dr Abel has received consulting fees from Flo Health; has served on the advisory board for Karolinska Institute (ended); has received royalties from Cambridge University Press and The Royal College of Psychiatrists; and is a stock shareholder in Google and Amgen.
Dr. Freeman, as an employee of Massachusetts General Hospital, working with the MGH Clinical Trials Network and Institute, has had research funding from multiple pharmaceutical companies and NIMH. MGH National Pregnancy Registry has been sponsored by Alkermes, Inc. (2016-Present), Eisai, Inc. (2022-Present), Johnson & Johnson/Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc (2019-Present), Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. (2008-Present), Sage Therapeutics (2019-Present), Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (2011-Present), Supernus Pharmaceuticals (2021-Present), and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (2018-Present). Past Sponsors include Forest/Actavis/Allergan (2016-2018), AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals (2009-2014), AuroMedics Pharma LLC (2021-2022), Aurobindo Pharma (2020-2022), Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc (2009-2014), and Pfizer, Inc. (2009-2011); has received advisory boards or consulting fees from Data Safety Committees and Independent Data Safety and Monitoring Committees from Janssen (Johnson& Johnson), Novartis, Neurocrine, Eliem, Sage, Brainify, Everly Health, Tibi Health, Relmada, Beckley Psytech, and Brii Biotech; received honoraria for speaking/teaching from WebMD, Medscape, Pri-Med, Postpartum Support International; and has received royalties from The Massachusetts General Hospital Female Reproductive Lifecycle and Hormones Questionnaire.
None of the other planners, reviewers, and CME Institute staff for this educational activity have relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies to disclose. All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated.
Accreditation Statement
The CME Institute of Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc., is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Credit Designation
The CME Institute of Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc., designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Note: The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) and the American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) accept certificates of participation for educational activities certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from organizations accredited by the ACCME.
To obtain credit for this activity, study the material and complete the CME Posttest and Evaluation.
Available Credit
- 1.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™
- 1.00 Participation