Sleep Conditions Associate with Anxiety and Depression Symptoms among Pregnant Women during the Epidemic of COVID-19 in Shenzhen

Background: Pregnant women often encounter psychiatric symptoms and declined sleep quality as pregnancy proceeds. The associations between sleep conditions and anxious and depressive symptoms among pregnant women remained to be investigated, particularly during the epidemic of COVID-19. Methods: An online cross-sectional survey on pregnant women was conducted at the time period of fast increasing cases of COVID-19 in Shenzhen. The Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) were applied to detect anxious and depressive symptoms. Multivariable logistic regressions models were established to explore the associations of sleep conditions with psychological symptoms. Results: In total, 751 pregnant women were enrolled, with a mean age of 30.51 years (Standard deviation: 4.28). Overall, 82.7% of the respondents considered low risk of being infected by COVID-19. The prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms during the epidemic of COVID-19 among pregnant women were 13.4% and 35.4%, respectively, but most of which were mild. Variables referred to poor sleep conditions were strongly associated with anxious and depressive symptoms, including random or late time of going to bed, difficulty in falling sleep, short sleep duration, and ordinary or poor subjective sleep quality. Limitations: Non-random sample restricted generalization of our findings to the whole population of pregnant women. Conclusions: Our research revealed a notable proportion of the pregnant women who exhibited mild anxiety and depression symptoms during the epidemic of COVID-19 in Shenzhen. Targeted interventions in improving sleep conditions might help alleviate gestational anxious and depressive symptoms.

Automated summary

Our study revealed a significant proportion of pregnant women in Shenzhen exhibited mild anxiety and depression symptoms during the COVID-19 epidemic. Poor sleep conditions were strongly associated with anxious and depressive symptoms, including random or late bedtime, difficulty falling asleep, short sleep duration, and ordinary or poor subjective sleep quality.