Milica Zugic

• Zugic, Milica; Pejic, Natasa; Hayati, Saeed; Gelder, Marleen van & Nordeng, Hedvig Marie Egeland (2026). Development of a novel adherence scale for antidepressants in pregnancy: Results from a cross-sectional study. Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy (ERCSP). 21. doi: 10.1016/j.rcsop.2026.100704. Full text in Research Archive
• Wijk, Emma van; Zugic, Milica; Rostami, Sina; Gelder, Marleen van; Ahmad, Ashi Sarfraz & Sitras, Vasilis [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2025). Gestational weight gain and postpartum weight retention: What is the role of perinatal antidepressant use? Journal of Affective Disorders. ISSN 0165-0327. 394(A). doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2025.120521. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Background: Little is known about the association between perinatal antidepressant use and gestational weight gain (GWG) and postpartum weight retention (PPWR). Methods: We used data from the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa), linked to the Medical Birth Registry of Norway (MBRN) and the Norwegian Prescribed Drug Registry (LMR). We included singleton, live birth pregnancies with pre-pregnancy depression/anxiety. Prenatal and perinatal antidepressant use trajectories were constructed using longitudinal k-means clustering. GWG and PPWR at 6/18 months postpartum were calculated using self-reported data. We estimated weighted relative risks (wRR) and 95 % confidence intervals (CI) using modified Poisson regression with robust variance estimators and overlap weights. For a sub- population with available genetics data, we used polygenic risk scores (PRSs) to partially account for confounding by genetic component. Results: Among 3365 pregnancies included, we observed six prenatal and perinatal antidepressant use trajectories: non-users, pre-pregnancy discontinuers, early pregnancy discontinuers, late pregnancy discontinuers, continuers, and post-pregnancy initiators. Pre-pregnancy discontinuers had increased risk of inadequate GWG compared to non-users (wRR 1.34, 95 % CI 1.03–1.73). Early pregnancy discontinuers (wRR 0.89, 95 % CI 0.78–1.02), late pregnancy discontinuers (wRR 0.88, 95 % CI 0.76–1.01), and continuers (wRR 0.86, 95 % CI 0.71–1.05) had a borderline decreased risk of excessive PPWR at 6 months postpartum compared to non-users. We observed no other associations between antidepressant use trajectories and GWG or PPWR. Conclusion: These results enhance knowledge on weight-related safety concerns of antidepressant use in the prenatal and perinatal period, specifically regarding GWG and PPWR.

• Zugic, Milica; Trinh, Nhung; Rostami, Sina; Nordeng, Hedvig Marie Egeland; Ystrøm, Eivind & Bulik, Cynthia M [Show all 10 contributors for this article] (2025). Antenatal depressive and anxiety symptoms in women with eating disorders who continue or discontinue antidepressant treatment in pregnancy. Journal of Affective Disorders Reports. 22, p. 1–10. doi: 10.1016/j.jadr.2025.100985. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Background Limited evidence on antidepressant effectiveness in pregnant women with eating disorders (ED) challenges pharmacotherapy management. We examined antenatal depressive and anxiety symptoms with continued antidepressant use in women with ED. Methods We used data from the Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Cohort Study (MoBa) linked to the Medical Birth Registry of Norway and MoBa Genetics. MoBa questionnaires at weeks 17 (early) and 30 (mid-late pregnancy) measured antidepressant exposure and symptoms of depression and anxiety using the 5-item Hopkins Symptom Checklist. We fitted generalised linear models and adjusted for confounding. In a subsample, we stratified analyses by polygenic-score tertiles for antidepressant response. Results We identified 5920 pregnancies in women with ED, mainly binge-eating disorder (BED) (84.0 %) and bulimia nervosa (BN) (12.4 %). Of these, 48 (0.8 %) continued antidepressants into early pregnancy, 93 (1.6 %) discontinued during, and 85 (1.4 %) discontinued before pregnancy. At early pregnancy only, continued antidepressant was associated with lower severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms relative to discontinuation. Among women with BED, this was specific to lower anxiety symptoms (β:-0.43, 95 %CI:-0.84, -0.02). This association was not observed in women with BN. In women with higher antidepressant-response polygenic-score continued antidepressant was associated with lower symptom severity relative to discontinued (range of β:-0.86 to -1.35). Conclusions Continuing antidepressants in early but not mid-late pregnancy is associated with lower severity of depressive and anxiety symptoms in women with BED. The association observed in women with higher antidepressant-response polygenic-score calls for larger studies on personalized treatment in perinatal ED.

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