Journal
BMC PSYCHIATRY
Volume 17, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
BMC
DOI: 10.1186/s12888-017-1462-4
Keywords
Antenatal depressive symptoms; Perinatal complications; Prospective study; Rural and low income; Ethiopia
Categories
Funding
- UK aid from the UK government
- Medical Research Council
- Department for International Development through the African Research Leader scheme
- Debre Markos University
- Department for International Development (DFID) [201446] Funding Source: researchfish
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Background: Antenatal depressive symptoms affect around 12.3% of women in in low and middle income countries (LMICs) and data are accumulating about associations with adverse outcomes for mother and child. Studies from rural, low-income country community samples are limited. This paper aims to investigate whether antenatal depressive symptoms predict perinatal complications in a rural Ethiopia setting. Methods: A population-based prospective study was conducted in Sodo district, southern Ethiopia. A total of 1240 women recruited in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy were followed up until 4 to 12 weeks postpartum. Antenatal depressive symptoms were assessed using a locally validated version of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) that at a cut-off score of five or more indicates probable depression. Self-report of perinatal complications, categorised as maternal and neonatal were collected by using structured interviewer administered questionnaires at a median of eight weeks post-partum. Multivariate analysis was conducted to examine the association between antenatal depressive symptoms and self-reported perinatal complications. Result: A total of 28.7% of women had antenatal depressive symptoms (PHQ-9 score >= 5). Women with antenatal depressive symptoms had more than twice the odds of self-reported complications in pregnancy (OR = 2.44, 95% CI: 1.84, 3.23), labour (OR = 1.84 95% CI: 1.34, 2.53) and the postpartum period (OR = 1.70, 95% CI: 1.23, 2.35) compared to women without these symptoms. There was no association between antenatal depressive symptoms and pregnancy loss or neonatal death. Conclusion: Antenatal depressive symptoms are associated prospectively with self-reports of perinatal complications. Further research is necessary to further confirm these findings in a rural and poor context using objective measures of complications and investigating whether early detection and treatment of depressive symptoms reduces these complications.
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