Peripartum psychiatric illnesses are the most common medical complications of childbirth. This conference grant application is to support the Marci Society (International Society for the Understanding, Prevention and Treatment of Mental Illness Related to Childbearing), from October 27-October 30, 2010 in Pittsburgh, PA. The Marci Society is named after Louis Victor Marci, a French physician (1828-1864) who first described the psychoses of pregnant and newly delivered women. The sponsoring institution is the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The target audience is both the professional and lay communities that seek to advance perinatal and women's mental health. The anticipated conference size is 300-500 attendees, with the majority attending from the United States. The objectives of the conference are: 1) Increase recognition that perinatal mental illness is a very common and understudied clinical problem in the United States. 2) Launch an American Marci Society in conjunction with the international Marci meeting in 2010. 3) Provide training opportunities for new investigators in perinatal mental health. 4) Acknowledge the research opportunities afforded to our field by the specific biopsychosocial challenges of childbearing. The contributions of perinatal mental health to the greater field are underappreciated. Therefore, the theme of the meeting is: Perinatal Mental Health Research: Harvesting the Potential. In parallel to the vision of NIMH, the Marci Society envisions a world in which perinatal mental illnesses are prevented and cured. To dovetail with the strategic plan of NIMH, the Marci Society conference will be organized according to the plan's aims. The four themes of the strategic plan have been adapted to structure the program content: 1) Promote discovery in the brain and behavioral sciences to fuel research on the causes of perinatal mental disorders;2) Chart perinatal mental illness trajectories to determine when, where, and how to intervene;3) Develop new and better interventions that incorporate the diverse needs and circumstances of women with perinatal mental illnesses and their families;4) Strengthen the public health impact of NIMH-supported research for women with perinatal disorders and their families.
Although a striking 14.5% of women experience postpartum depression, even higher rates have been reported among inner city women, mothers who have delivered infants preterm, and adolescents. This conference will expand the focus of perinatal mental health research beyond depression to other mental illnesses in childbearing women, and consider the full spectrum of translational research from basic science to health service and policy development for these disorders. The proposed meeting will launch an American Marci Society, with the goal of providing a research and collaborative networking forum for clinical investigators in this crucial area of public health. 1
