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Post-abortion mania

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

I. F. Brockington
I. F. Brockington*
Affiliation:
Division of Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Queen Elizabeth Psychiatric Hospital, Mindelsohn Way, Birmingham BI5 2QZ
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Abstract

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Type
Correspondence
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 176 , Issue 1 , January 2000 , pp. 92
Copyright
Copyright © 2000 The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

I was interested to read the report by Dr Mahe and his colleagues, describing a woman who suffered from five episodes of puerperal mania and two of post-abortion psychosis, one after a therapeutic abortion and one after a spontaneous abortion. This clinical observation is a valuable contribution to the literature.

The association of acute psychosis with abortion in women susceptible to puerperal psychosis has previously been noted in nine reports, starting with Esquirol in 1819. Some of the terminations were carried out in order to prevent a puerperal psychosis! This literature is summarised in my book Motherhood & Mental Health, pages 91-93. There is evidence, especially from Denmark (Reference DavidDavid, 1985), that abortion is a greater risk factor than a full-term pregnancy.

References

Brockington, I. F. (1996) Motherhood & Mental Health. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
David, H. P. (1985) Post-abortion and post-partum psychiatric hospitalization. In Abortion: Medical Progress and Social Implications. CIBA Foundation Symposium 115, pp. 150–164. Chichester: Wiley.Google Scholar
Mahe, V., Nartowski, J., Montagnon, F., et al (1999) Psychosis with gonadorelin agonist administration (letter). British Journal of Psychiatry, 175, 290–291.Google Scholar
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