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
. 2021 Mar 12:38:258.
doi: 10.11604/pamj.2021.38.258.27023. eCollection 2021.

The magnitude and determinants of antepartum depression among women attending antenatal clinic at a tertiary hospital, in Mwanza Tanzania: a cross-sectional study

Matiko Mwita  1   2 , Doreen Kasongi  1 , Eliya Bernard  1 , Daniel Gunda  1 , Blandina Mmbaga  3
Affiliations

The magnitude and determinants of antepartum depression among women attending antenatal clinic at a tertiary hospital, in Mwanza Tanzania: a cross-sectional study

Matiko Mwita et al. Pan Afr Med J. .

Abstract

Introduction: there is an increased vulnerability for the development of common mental disorders during the peripartum period as evidenced in depressive disorder.

Methods: a cross sectional study was used to determine the prevalence and risk factors associated with depression among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic (ANC) at Bugando Medical Centre (BMC), a tertiary level hospital in Mwanza Tanzania. A total of 380 pregnant women were recruited and interviewed by using Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale. The sample size was randomly selected from the clinic.

Results: the mean age of the participants was 30.35 years, with minimum and maximum age of 20 years and 47 years respectively with 89.74% of the participants being married. Almost half of the participants, 53.68% were on the third trimester, with about two-third of the participants, 76.84% reports to have planned for their current pregnancies. The overall prevalence of depression was 15% with middle age of the partner (31-40 years), been married, high level of education, partner and family support were found to be statistically protective for depression while polygamy and partner violence were statistically risk factor for depression.

Conclusion: the results showed high prevalence of antepartum depression which emphasizes the importance of earlier screening, detection and intervention to reduce the burden of morbidity and disability.

Keywords: Pregnancy; Tanzania; antenatal; depression; mental health; women.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Smith MV, Shao L, Howell H, Lin H, Yonkers KA. Perinatal depression and birth outcomes in a Healthy Start project. Matern Child Health J. 2011 Apr;15(3):401–9. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bowen A, Muhajarine N. Prevalence of antenatal depression in women enrolled in an outreach program in Canada. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. 2006 Jul-Aug;35(4):491–8. - PubMed
    1. Fisher J, de Mello MC, Patel V, Rahman A, Tran T, Holton S, et al. Prevalence and determinants of common perinatal mental disorders in women in low-and lower-middle-income countries: a systematic review. Bull World Health Organ. 2012 Feb 1;90(2):139G–149G. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Biaggi A, Conroy S, Pawlby S, Pariante CM. Identifying the women at risk of antenatal anxiety and depression: a systematic review. J Affect Disord. 2016 Feb;191:62–77. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kaaya SF, Mbwambo JK, Kilonzo GP, Van Den Borne H, Leshabari MT, Smith Fawzi MC, et al. Socio-economic and partner relationship factors associated with antenatal depressive morbidity among pregnant women in. Tanzan J Health Res. 2010 Jan;12(1):23–35. - PubMed