Increasingly, healthcare systems are focusing on postpartum depression as a significant problem that is not currently being adequately addressed. Despite the fact that it has the potential to become a chronic, recurring disorder, it is still treated as a transitory illness, which not only raises the cost to society over the long-term but also impacts pharmaceutical revenues.

• Detailed analysis about the epidemiology of postpartum depression in 12 separate markets, including diagnosis and drug-treatment rates

  
  

• In-depth profiles of the current clinical data for postpartum depression

  
  

• Analysis of the unique problems facing manufacturers in this market, particularly the decision to opt for safety data as opposed to efficacy results

  
  

• Outline of the need to develop specific marketing campaign for postpartum depression as it is treated by numerous secondary-care specialists

  
  

• An illustration of the value of the current postpartum depression, including an outline about how manufacturers can increase their revenue potential

  
  

Although 15% of all women who give birth will suffer from postpartum depression, only 24% are actually diagnosed. This is a major barrier to treatment and needs to be addressed by both manufacturers and healthcare systems. Antidepressant manufacturers need to illustrate the range of problems caused by postpartum depression, from the impact on the development of the infant to the overall cost of depression to society, and lobby for enhanced screening programs.

Wyeth’s Effexor and Eli Lilly’s Prozac are the leading drugs in terms of clinical research, highlighting the opportunity that exists for other antidepressant manufacturers. Most other manufacturers have only publicized safety data as concerns asre held by physicians and patients about the potential transfer of antidepressant medication through breast milk. However, efficacy data is needed to ramp up the number of patients treated with antidepressant medication.

Postpartum depression represents a significant commercial opportunity for smaller players in the antidepressant market as opposed to the major players. The size of the market is smaller than a number of anxiety disorder markets, which explains why the major manufacturers have concentrated on this area in recent years. However, the size of the depression market means that niche players have an opportunity to establish themselves and considerably enlarge their revenue performance.

• Understand the key issues which have limited the size of the postpartum depression market

  
  

• Enhance your ability to drive the growth of this market by targeting the appropriate medical specialists

  
  

• Discover what steps competing players have taken to break into this market

  
  

• Evaluate the clear opportunities that exist in this market

  
  

This Market Brief will help answer strategic planning questions such as:

How may patients in 12 major markets are suffering from postpartum depression in 2002

What is the strategy of the major antidepressant manufacturers to gain access to the postpartum depression market?

What are the major physician barriers to commercial success in this market?

What are the major patient barriers to commercial success in this market?

What are the major healthcare system barriers to commercial success in this market?

EPIDEMIOLOGY

An overview of the epidemiology of postpartum depression in 12 separate markets, including a focus on prevalence, diagnosis and drug-treatment rates and a special analysis of treatment length

CURRENT TREATMENT OPTIONS

In-depth profiles of the current clinical data for postpartum depression, including a focus on why many players have opted for a strategy which outlines safety data as opposed to efficacy data

RECOMMENDED MARKETING STRATEGIES

A comprehensive analysis of the need to develop unique marketing strategies for this section of the depression patient population as they are likely to be diagnosed and treated by non-psychiatric secondary care specialists

BARRIERS TO COMMERCIAL SUCCESS

An overview of the main barriers to commercial success in the postpartum depression market (e.g. patient apathy towards pharmacological therapy and the undervalued attitude towards postpartum depression held by many healthcare systems) and how pharmaceutical manufacturers can overcome this and increase their revenue potential

Action Point 1: Antidepressant manufacturers need to supplement their safety data with efficacy data to ramp up revenues of pharmacological therapies.

Action Point 2: Manufacturers need to target non-psychiatric secondary care specialists (e.g. pediatricians) to improve the diagnosis rate of postpartum depression

Action Point 3: Datamonitor advises a physician-led education campaign for target patients to outline the dangers and potentially chronicity of postpartum depression.

Action Point 4: By outlining the impact of postpartum depression upon the development of infants, pharmaceutical manufacturers are likely to have a greater chance of persuading healthcare systems to increase the level of postpartum depression screening.

Table 1: Prevalence of postpartum depression, 2002

Table 2: Diagnosis and drug-treatment rates of postpartum depression, 2002

Table 3: Current postpartum depression patient base and treatment length, 2002

Table 4: Estimated postpartum depression market, 2002

Table 5: Patient potential of the postpartum depression market

Table 6: Potential revenues from the postpartum depression market

Figure 1: The main barriers to revenues for antidepressant manufacturers competing in the postpartum depression market

Figure 2: Symptoms of postpartum depression

Figure 3: Risk factors of postpartum depression