Oxytocin and postpartum depression: delivering on what's known and what's not.

The role of oxytocin in the treatment of postpartum depression has been a topic of growing interest. This subject carries important implications, given that postpartum depression can have detrimental effects on both the mother and her infant, with lifelong consequences for infant socioemotional and cognitive development. In recent years, oxytocin has received attention for its potential role in many neuropsychiatric conditions beyond its well-described functions in childbirth and lactation.