The effectiveness of iron supplementation for postpartum depression A protocol for systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) is one of the most common postpartum psychiatric disorders. The prevalence of PPD ranges from approximately 10% to 30%. In recent years, iron supplementation has emerged as potential means to treat PPD, and an increasing number of studies have been published to support the effectiveness of iron supplementation for PPD. we will conduct a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the evidence of randomized controlled trials for iron supplementation treatment of PPD. Methods: PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Science, and Technology Journal Database, and Chinese Biomedical Literature Database will be searched from their inception of databases to December 31, 2020. Two reviewers will select articles, extract data and assess the risk of bias independently. Any disagreement will be resolved by discussion with the third reviewer. Review Manager 5.3 software will be used for data synthesis. The Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool will be used to assess the risk of bias. Results: This study will conduct a comprehensive literature search and provide a systematic synthesis of current published data to explore the effectiveness of iron supplementation for PPD. Conclusions: This systematic review and meta-analysis will provide clinical evidence for the effectiveness of iron supplementation for PPD, inform our understanding of the value of iron supplementation in improving PPD symptoms, and help clinicians to make better decisions regarding the appropriate role of iron supplementation as a part of prevention and treatment routines. Study registration number: INPLASY2020110007