Abstract
We reported previously that reduction in beta-arrestin 1 (β-AR 1) protein levels in peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes (PBMC) significantly correlated with the severity of depressive symptoms in reproductive women. In this pilot study, we used β-AR 1 protein levels in PBMC as a marker for developing depressive symptoms and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D) scores to assess potential mood-related side effects of oral contraceptive use for routine birth control among women. We evaluated 29 women in this study. We enrolled the participants in three groups: Estrogen-progestin combination-oral contraceptives (COC, n = 10), progestin-only contraceptives (POC, n = 12), and non-hormonal or no contraceptives (NC, n = 7). We determined the β-AR 1 protein levels in PBMCs by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). We found that women in the POC group had significantly higher HAM-D scores compared to those in the COC (p < 0.0004) and NC (p < 0.004). The levels of β-AR 1 protein were significantly attenuated in women in the POC group compared to women in the NC group (p = 0.03). Our findings suggest that the use of POC is a potential risk factor for developing depressive symptoms.
Highlights
Depression and anxiety, among the most prevalent and disabling chronic diseases affecting reproductive-aged women worldwide, can contribute to adverse reproductive health outcomes.Women across different populations are twice as likely to experience depression as men during their reproductive years [1]
We present beta-arrestin 1 (β-AR 1) protein level, a novel analyte in peripheral blood mononuclear leukocytes (PBMCs), which can be used as an early marker or may have mediated the observed changes in mood
There was no significant difference in body weights between women in the NC, non-hormonal or in nothe contraceptives; contraceptives containing both estrogen and progestin (COC), estrogen-progestin combination-oral contraceptives; progestin-only contraceptives (POC), NC group and those
Summary
Depression and anxiety, among the most prevalent and disabling chronic diseases affecting reproductive-aged women worldwide, can contribute to adverse reproductive health outcomes.Women across different populations are twice as likely to experience depression as men during their reproductive years [1]. Since contraceptive agents are widely used by reproductive women, it is important to know if any association exists between contraceptive use and depressive symptoms. It has been suggested in a review article that modern contraceptives with a lower-dosage of steroids do not have a clinically relevant impact on women’s mood, as compared to higher doses of steroids that were used during the 1970’s when depression was the known side effects of oral contraceptives use [3]. A long-term study on more than a million women in Denmark, with no history of depression for 13 years, found that those who used hormonal contraceptives had a fifty percent greater risk of developing depression within six months of using the contraceptives than those who did not use it [4]
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