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
. 2025 Aug;53(4):658-668.
doi: 10.62641/aep.v53i4.1834.

Assessing Factors Affecting Postpartum Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Development of Risk Prediction Nomogram Model

Affiliations

Assessing Factors Affecting Postpartum Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Development of Risk Prediction Nomogram Model

Xinling Wang et al. Actas Esp Psiquiatr. 2025 Aug.

Abstract

Background: Currently, the factors impacting postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder (PP-PTSD) remain unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to screen the PP-PTSD risk factors and to develop an effective and user-friendly column chart prediction model (nomogram), thereby providing a basis for early clinical diagnosis and prompt intervention.

Methods: This retrospective study collected 180 postpartum women between January 2023 and December 2023. Based on the occurrence of PP-PTSD, study participants were divided into two groups: a control group (No-PP-PTSD) and an observation group (PP-PTSD). The logistic regression analysis were used to identify independent risk factors for this condition, and nomogram models were developed by incorporating these items. Furthermore, we applied the calibration plots, decision curve analysis (DCA), and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to assess the predictive performance of the nomogram.

Results: Multivariable logistic regression analysis identified working condition (p = 0.008), relationship with the second primary caregiver of the child (p < 0.001), type of pregnancy (p < 0.001), pregnancy mode (p < 0.001), newborns sent to the ICU (p < 0.001), postpartum anxiety (p = 0.002), and plan pregnancy (p = 0.001) as independent risk factors for PP-PTSD.

Conclusions: We developed a user-friendly and scientifically robust nomogram model for predicting PP-PTSD risk in postpartum women. This predicting tool has the potential to assist clinicians in making informed decisions concerning PP-PTSD among postpartum women.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Nomogram for predicting PP-PTSD. Note: Working, Working condition; Relationship, Relationship with the secondary caregiver of the child; Mode, Pregnancy mode; ICU, Newborns ICU admission; anxiety, postpartum anxiety; Plan, planned pregnancy.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Calibration curve of the nomogram.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. AUC, Area Under the Curve.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Decision curve analysis of the nomogram model.

References

    1. Ferguson R. Recognizing postpartum posttraumatic stress disorder. Nursing . 2018;48:14. doi: 10.1097/01.NURSE.0000531015.55589.2f. - DOI - PubMed
    1. de Graaff LF, Honig A, van Pampus MG, Stramrood CAI. Preventing post-traumatic stress disorder following childbirth and traumatic birth experiences: a systematic review. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica . 2018;97:648–656. doi: 10.1111/aogs.13291. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Suarez A, Yakupova V. Effects of postpartum PTSD on maternal mental health and child socioemotional development - a two-year follow-up study. BMC Pediatrics . 2024;24:789. doi: 10.1186/s12887-024-05282-0. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Romero G, Huth-Bocks A, Puro-Gallagher E, Riggs J. Maternal prenatal depression, PTSD, and problematic parenting: the mediating role of maternal perceptions of infant emotion. Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology . 2021;39:125–139. doi: 10.1080/02646838.2020.1754371. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Malaju MT, Alene GD, Bisetegn TA. Longitudinal path analysis for the directional association of depression, anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder with their comorbidities and associated factors among postpartum women in Northwest Ethiopia: A cross-lagged autoregressive modelling study. PloS One . 2022;17:e0273176. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0273176. - DOI - PMC - PubMed