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
. 2023 Nov;32(Suppl 1):S141-S146.
doi: 10.4103/ipj.ipj_225_23. Epub 2023 Nov 30.

Biopsychosocial correlates of emotional problems in women during pregnancy and postpartum period

Archana Javadekar  1 , Arpita Karmarkar  1 , Suprakash Chaudhury  1 , Daniel Saldanha  1 , Jaideep Patil  1
Affiliations

Biopsychosocial correlates of emotional problems in women during pregnancy and postpartum period

Archana Javadekar et al. Ind Psychiatry J. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Background: Transition to motherhood is associated with several emotional problems that can have long-term consequences on the mother and baby.

Aim: To examine the association of various biomedical and cultural factors with the new onset of emotional problems during pregnancy and postpartum period.

Materials and methods: This prospective longitudinal study included 300 pregnant women interviewed in the third trimester.

Results: The prevalence of emotional problems in the study group was 31.58%. The prevalence of anxiety disorder NOS and mixed anxiety and depressive disorder in the last trimester of pregnancy in our study was 4% and 1.33%, respectively, and 0.67% and 1.33%, respectively, at 4 days postpartum. At 6 weeks postpartum, the prevalence of anxiety disorder NOS was 1.33%, generalized anxiety disorder was 0.67%, and major depression was 1.33. The prevalence of postpartum blues in our study was 25.33%.

Conclusion: There was a significant association between psychiatric disorders during and postpartum period and the following factors: higher parity, increased maternal age, low hemoglobin levels, cesarean section, planned pregnancy, and extended family. Postpartum blues was associated with higher parity and low blood pressure.

Keywords: Antenatal depression; postpartum blues; postpartum depression.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. McLeish J, Redshaw M. Mothers' accounts of the impact on the emotional wellbeing of organized peer support in pregnancy and early parenthood: A qualitative study. BMC Pregnancy Childbirth. 2017;17:28. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Luciano M, Sampogna G, Del Vecchio V, Giallonardo V, Perris F, Carfagno M, et al. The transition from maternity blues to full-blown perinatal depression: Results from a longitudinal study. Front Psychiatry. 2021;12:703180. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.703180. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Shidhaye P, Giri P. Maternal depression: A hidden burden in developing countries. Ann Med Health Sci Res. 2014;4:463–5. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Altshuler LL, Hendricks V, Cohen LS. An update on mood and anxiety disorder during pregnancy and postpartum period. J Clin Psychiatry. 2000;2:217–22. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Robertson E, Grace S, Wallington T, Stewart DE. Antenatal risk factors for postpartum depression: A synthesis of recent literature. Gen Hosp Psych. 2004;26:289–95. - PubMed