Pregnancy and Postpartum Depressive Symptoms

Abstract

Women's health research during the childbearing period has focused on high-risk pregnancy conditions with particular attention on the indices, predictive factors, and therapeutic approaches associated with depressive illness in the postpartum. There has been scant attention given to the broader spectrum of affective responses and experiences that occur throughout the continuum of pregnancy and postpartum. An understanding of the range of normative and disruptive symptoms is needed to improve health promotion strategies and preventative services for women during the childbearing period. The purpose of this prospective longitudinal study was to assess depressive symptoms of 202 women at 10 to 14 and 30 to 32 weeks of pregnancy and at 1 to 2 and 14 weeks postpartum. A modification of the Schedule of Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (SADS) developed by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) was utilized as the standardized clinical interview at each time period. Separate principal components analyses to determine the factor structure of 23 symptoms of depression at each assessment period were conducted. A specific but differing symptom cluster representing a singular factor at each time period was found. The findings highlight the need to continue investigating women's depressive symptoms throughout pregnancy and postpartum in efforts to design assessments more tailored to women's experiences and point directions for future strategies in prevention and treatment programs.