---
title: "Psych News Alert: Guidelines for Treating Perimenopausal Depression Released"
description: Studies suggest women are at an increased risk of depression during perimenopause—the time right before menopause when female hormones st...
---

[Psych News Alert ](https://alert.psychnews.org)

# [Psych News Alert: Guidelines for Treating Perimenopausal Depression Released](https://alert.psychnews.org/2018/09/guidelines-for-treating-perimenopausal.html)

 Written by [Psychiatric News Alert](https://alert.psychnews.org/author/psychiatric-news-alert) | 9/7/18 4:00 AM

|  |  |
| --- | --- |

Studies suggest women are at an increased risk of depression during perimenopause—the time right before menopause when female hormones start to decline. A multi-institute expert panel convened by the North American Menopause Society and the National Network on Depression Centers Women and Mood Disorders Task Group has now developed and published the first-ever [guidelines](https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/jwh.2018.27099.mensocrec) for the evaluation and treatment of perimenopausal depression.

The guidelines were jointly published in the journals *Menopause* and the *Journal of Women's Health*.

“The notion of a menopause-associated depression … has been the focus of clinical and scientific debate for years,” wrote the panel members. “The lack of consensus on this issue has also led to a lack of clarity [on] how to evaluate and treat depression in women during the menopausal transition and postmenopausal period.”

The expert panel, co-chaired by Pauline Maki, Ph.D., of the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine and Susan Kornstein, M.D., of Virginia Commonwealth University focused on five areas: epidemiology, clinical presentation, effects of antidepressants, effects of hormone therapy, and efficacy of other therapies such as psychotherapy and exercise.

The recommendations made by the panel include the following:

- Proven therapeutic options for depression such as antidepressants and psychotherapy are best for treating major depressive episodes during perimenopause.
- Existing data suggest that antidepressants can be given to perimenopausal women at doses typically prescribed to adults.
- There is some evidence that estrogen therapy has antidepressant effects when administered to perimenopausal women with depression. However, estrogen therapy has been shown to be ineffective as a treatment for depressive disorders in postmenopausal women.
- Hormonal contraceptives may improve depressive symptoms in women approaching menopause.

To read more about depression and menopause, see the *Psychiatric News* article “[Older Age at Menopause May Reduce Risk of Depression](https://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2016.2a20).”

(Image: iStock/FilippoBacci)

<https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/Twitter_Bird-Jun-24-2025-09-29-34-7892-PM.png> 

**[Follow *Psychiatric News* on Twitter!](https://twitter.com/PsychiatricNews)**

[View full post](https://alert.psychnews.org/2018/09/guidelines-for-treating-perimenopausal.html)

```json
{
  "@context" : "http://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Psychiatric News Alert"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2025-06-24T21:30:58.300Z",
  "datePublished" : "2018-09-07T04:00:00Z",
  "headline" : "Guidelines for Treating Perimenopausal Depression Released",
  "image" : {
    "@type" : "ImageObject",
    "height" : 380,
    "url" : "https://46880868.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/46880868/Imported_Blog_Media/therapist_women_iStock-814596226-Jun-24-2025-09-26-27-4707-PM.jpg",
    "width" : 724
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://alert.psychnews.org/2018/09/guidelines-for-treating-perimenopausal.html",
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "height" : 60,
      "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4092/img/default-amp-logo.png",
      "width" : 60
    },
    "name" : "Psych News Alert"
  }
}
```