Context Sex steroids (SS) typically rise during pregnancy and decline after birth, but no consistent reference values exist for these hormonal courses. We aimed to establish an overview of SS secretion patterns during the peripartum and to better understand how SS contribute to maternal and fetal pathologies. Evidence acquisition A systematic literature search was conducted in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines using PubMed, Cochrane Library, and PsycINFO. Additionally, we conducted a supplementary manual search of references. Observational studies published in English and assessing estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone over the course of the peripartum in physically healthy female subjects were included, without restrictions on year of publication. Extracted data were analyzed descriptively and visually. Evidence synthesis SS increase progressively during pregnancy, with an extremely wide range of reported concentrations, especially in the third trimester. In fact, reported concentrations varied up to 5000-fold at comparable measurement time points. Conclusions A comprehensive understanding of the influence of SS levels on associated maternal and fetal pathologies is currently hindered by two main factors. First, reported SS levels vary widely during the peripartum period. Second, the current state of knowledge on how SS are associated with pathologies in mothers and babies is largely based on correlational studies, and causality thus remains unclear. Consequently, we recommend the development of a systematic reference framework that follows the suggestions presented in this review. This would enable the establishment of SS reference values for a healthy population, resulting in the possibility to draw conclusions about deviations and related pathologies.

Background: Depressive symptoms are common in the peripartum period and pose a great risk to the well-being of the mother, the infant, and the entire family. Evidence from longitudinal studies suggests that affected women do not constitute one homogeneous group in terms of severity, chronicity, and onset of symptoms. To account for individual differences regarding the longitudinal course of depressive symptoms from pregnancy to the postpartum period, growth mixture models have proven to be useful. Methods: We conducted a group-based trajectory modeling analysis to identify perinatal depressive symptom trajectories in a Swiss sample ( n = 151). Depressive symptoms were assessed six times, covering nearly 6 months from the third trimester of pregnancy to 3 months postpartum. In addition to determining perinatal depressive symptom trajectories, we aimed to examine whether these trajectories are linked to psychopathological risk factors such as a history of premenstrual syndrome (PMS), anxiety, prenatal stress, and somatic symptoms after delivery that are associated with hormonal fluctuations. Results: The findings revealed three trajectories of perinatal depressive symptoms that were relatively stable over time and differed in symptom load (low, medium, high), as well as one trajectory of decreasing symptoms, with a significant symptom reduction after giving birth. Women with a higher depressive symptom load experienced a greater degree of prior premenstrual symptoms, prenatal anxiety, and birth anxiety, as well as somatic symptoms after delivery. Conclusion: Further research is needed to account for the distinct trajectories of perinatal depressive symptoms in order to provide appropriate care for affected women. A focus on somatic symptoms after delivery and their association with depressive mood is essential to better understand the potential shared etiopathology of reproductive transition phase mood disorders.

Cilj ovog rada je da prikažemo sliku proslave Purima opisanu u modernističkom romanu Došljaci (1910) Milutina Uskokovića. Metodološki okvir rada, kao osnovno teorijsko polazište, predstavlja Bahtinova teorija o karnevalu. Analizom sadržaja romana, razmotrićemo tradiciju maskiranja, fenomen smeha, slobodu govora i ponašanja kao integralni deo karnevalskog karaktera purimske proslave, u jevrejskoj mahali kraj Dunava. Empirijsku sliku proslave Purima početkom XX veka posmatramo i kao umetnički prikaz stvarnosti sefardskih Jevreja na Jaliji dorćolskoj. Sagledavajući značaj koji je praznik imao za jevrejsku zajednicu, dunavsku Jaliju koja ga je slavila i Sefarde koji su u njoj stanovali, ukazujemo na (literarno) svedočanstvo o jednoj zajednici, jednom vremenu i jednom kvartu koji više ne postoji.