Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013 Jul-Aug;38(4):215-20.
doi: 10.1097/NMC.0b013e3182861572.

Maternal depression and rapid subsequent pregnancy among first time mothers

Loral Patchen  1 , Robin Gaines Lanzi
Affiliations

Maternal depression and rapid subsequent pregnancy among first time mothers

Loral Patchen et al. MCN Am J Matern Child Nurs. 2013 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Purpose: To examine differences in prenatal depression among first-time mothers who had a subsequent pregnancy within 6 months of first birth and those who did not. Mothers with depression symptoms were expected to have a greater likelihood of rapid subsequent pregnancy.

Study design: The Parenting for the First Time study is a longitudinal multisite prospective descriptive study designed to identify and understand the dynamics of subthreshold neglectful parenting behaviors among first-time mothers. Data were collected from the prenatal period through the child's first 3 years of life. The Parenting for the First Time sample consisted of 684 first-time mothers between 15 and 36 years. Data were available on prenatal depression and subsequent pregnancy at 6 months for 279 participants (n = 279).

Methods: Multiple logistic regression analysis was conducted to determine the odds of subsequent pregnancy within 6 months of first birth.

Results: Twelve mothers (5.9%) became pregnant within 6 months of first birth. The odds of subsequent pregnancy were 7.24 greater (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.18-24.04) among mothers with moderate-to-severe depression. White versus non-White race did not influence subsequent pregnancy (0.91, 95% CI: 0.18-4.49). Pregnancy was not significantly different between teen and adult mothers (odds ratio: 0.92, 95% CI: 0.24-3.68).

Clinical implications: In this sample of first time mothers, moderate-to-severe depression symptoms were associated with subsequent pregnancy within 6 months of first birth. Routine depression screening by nurses during the prenatal period offers opportunities for intensive contraceptive counseling and may help mothers achieve optimal birth spacing.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest :Authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Approximately one-third of the original sample was retained in the present analysis. The majority of participants were excluded from analysis due to missing data regarding pregnancy status at six months. One site did not ask questions about pregnancy status and depression screens for 127 participants (due to maternal age less than 16 years).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Beck AT, Steer RA, & Brown GK (1996). Manual for Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II). Psychology Corporation, San Antonio.
    1. Bennett IM, Culhane JF, McCollum KF, & Elo IT (2005). Unintended rapid repeat pregnancy and low education status: Any role for depression and contraceptive use? American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology, 194, 749–754. 10.1016/j.ajog.2005.10.193 [doi] - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Conde-Agudelo A, Rosas-Bermúdez A, & Kafury-Goeta AC (2006). Birth spacing and risk of adverse perinatal outcomes: a meta-analysis. Journal of American Medical Association, 295, 1809–1823. 10.1001/jama.295.15.1809 [doi] - DOI - PubMed
    1. Conde-Agudelo A & Belizán JM (2000). Maternal morbidity and mortality associated with interpregnancy interval: cross sectional study. BMJ, 321, 1255–1259. - PMC - PubMed
    1. DaVanzo J, Hale L, Razzaque A, Rahman M (2007). Effects of interpregnancy interval and outcome of the preceding pregnancy on pregnancy outcomes in Matlab, Bangladesh. BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology, 114, 1079–87. 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2007.01338.x [doi] - DOI - PMC - PubMed