The Food and Drug Administration is expected to decide by Saturday whether to approve the first-ever pill for postpartum depression.
The medication, called zuranolone, is taken daily for two weeks. In a pair of clinical trials involving women who experienced severe depression after having a baby, the drug improved symptoms — such as anxiety, trouble sleeping, loss of pleasure, low energy, guilt or social withdrawal — as early as three days after the first pill.
The medication was jointly developed by pharmaceutical companies Biogen and Sage Therapeutics. If approved, it will become the first treatment for postpartum depression that can be taken at home.
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