MedTrace Logo

Sleep, Oxytocin and Reward Processing in Women in the Postpartum Phase

NCT06711809 · Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING · Type: OBSERVATIONAL · Enrollment: 100

Last updated 2024-12-02

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

During and after pregnancy, a woman's body and brain undergo significant changes that help her adapt to caregiving and emotional needs. However, this period also makes women more susceptible to emotional disorders, such as peripartum depression (PPD), which affects about 10-15% of new mothers. PPD can negatively impact both the mother and her baby, disrupting mood, motivation, and mothering abilities. Hormonal changes and poor sleep are some of the risk factors that might worsen these depressive symptoms.

Traditionally, sleep studies on PPD have relied on questionnaires and short-term sleep assessments. With the advent of smartwatches and digital devices, we can now monitor sleep in a home environment over longer periods. Oxytocin, a hormone crucial for childbirth, breastfeeding, and bonding with the baby, is thought to play a role in PPD. Studies suggest that higher levels of oxytocin might be linked to lower levels of postpartum depression, though findings are not always consistent. Oxytocin also affects sleep and is connected to brain areas that regulate reward and motivation.

This study aims to explore the relationship between sleep, oxytocin, and reward processing in new mothers. The investigators will include women with varying levels of depressive symptoms and use home-based sleep assessments to gather data. Our goal is to better understand how these factors interact in the postpartum period and how they might influence a mother's mental health and caregiving abilities.

The investigators expect that oxytocin levels are reduced in women with higher depressive symptoms and that these reductions are associated with sleep impairments, breastfeeding and altered reward processing.

Conditions

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Uppsala University

    collaborator OTHER

  • Uppsala University Hospital

    collaborator OTHER

  • International Research Training Group 2804

    lead OTHER

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Sex
FEMALE
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2025-01-01
Primary Completion
2026-12-31
Completion
2026-12-31

Countries

  • Sweden

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT06711809 on ClinicalTrials.gov