Journal
LANCET
Volume 365, Issue 9478, Pages 2201-2205Publisher
ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(05)66778-5
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- Wellcome Trust Funding Source: Medline
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Background Depression is common and frequently affects mothers and fathers of young children. Postnatal depression in mothers affects the quality of maternal care, and can lead to disturbances in their children's social, behavioural, cognitive, and physical development. However, the effect of depression in fathers during the early years of a child's life has received little attention. Methods As part of a large, population-based study of childhood, we assessed the presence of depressive symptoms in mothers (n=13 351) and fathers (n=12 884) 8 weeks after the birth of their child with the Edinburgh postnatal depression scale (EPDS). Fathers were reassessed at 21 months. We identified any subsequent development of behavioural and emotional problems in their children (n=10 024) at age 3.5 years with maternal reports on the Rutter revised preschool scales. Findings Information was available for 8431 fathers, 11833 mothers, and 10 024 children. Depression in fathers during the postnatal period was associated with adverse emotional and behavioural outcomes in children aged 3.5 years (adjusted odds ratio 2.09, 95% CI 1.42-3.08), and an increased risk of conduct problems in boys (2.66, 1.67-4.25). These effects remained even after controlling for maternal postnatal depression and later paternal depression. Interpretation Our findings indicate that paternal depression has a specific and persisting detrimental effect on their children's early behavioural and emotional development.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available