Meagan Wisenhart
CAPSTONE
Capstone Project Committee: Marion Earles, M.D., Pamela Reitnauer, M.D., Ph.D., MPH, Scott Richter, Ph.D. (Statistical Consultant), Randi Stewart, M.S., CGC
10-15% of new mothers are affected by postpartum depression (PPD), making it the most common complication of childbirth. Though childcare stress is a risk factor for PPD, there has not been significant research on the relationship between caring for infants with congenital anomalies and/or genetic conditions and experiencing PPD. The need for research in this area is especially apparent as the exponential growth in the field of genetics has increased the number of genetic diagnoses in infants through newborn screening, molecular genetic, and cytogenetic testing. The goal of this study was to examine the association between diagnoses of congenital anomalies and specific genetic conditions in infants and PPD in their mothers. It was hypothesized that there would be a positive correlation. This was a retrospective study of data collected from Triad Adult and Pediatric Medicine (TAPM) clinics, and variables that were assessed included Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Screen (EDPS) scores, presence of congenital anomalies/genetic conditions (ICD-9 codes), language of screen completion, maternal age, gravidity and parity, whether infants were cared for in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs), whether mothers were referred to social work, and whether Tots of Teens (TOTs), a program that provides additional services to teenage mothers and their children, evaluated mothers and infants. There was a significant difference in the rates of PPD between mothers of infants with congenital anomalies and/or specific genetic diagnoses and mothers whose infants did not have congenital anomalies and/or specific genetic diagnoses, with the former group having almost twice the rates of PPD as the latter group. These results indicate that having an infant with a congenital anomaly or genetic condition may be a risk factor for experiencing PPD. Observations that were noteworthy but not statistically significant included teenage pregnancy, low gravidity and parity, and completing a PPD screen in English rather than Spanish being associated with higher incidences of PPD.
Since Graduation
Meagan started her career at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) where she went on to direct the cancer genetic counseling program. In this position, she expanded oncology telegenetics, was a National Comprehensive Cancer Network panel member, and contributed to the Alabama Genomic Health Initiative and other research activities. She enjoyed participating in educational activities, including clinical supervision of genetic counseling students, teaching courses for the genetic counseling training program, creating a cancer genetic counseling fellowship, and lecturing. She remains part time with UAB as the lead genetic counselor for cancer genetic counseling services.
After being in a clinical role for several years, Meagan became interested in how technology can be used to scale genomics and keep patients and clinicians up-to-date over time. She consulted for My Gene Counsel (mGC), a digital health company founded by genetic counselors, beginning in 2014. She received her MBA in 2017, with concentrations in healthcare and information systems. She joined mGC full time in 2018 and is now the Genetic Clinical Operations Director.
Meagan and her husband got married and built a house in the Birmingham area in 2019.