Psychosocial risk factors for depression during pregnancy

To assess the prevalence of antenatal depressive disorder in different trimesters and to evaluate the relation of psychosocial risk factors to antenatal depressive disorder.

Cohort follow-up.

University Hospital, Kaunas, Lithuania.

Two hundred and thirty pregnant women consecutively admitted.

At 12-16 weeks, 22-26 weeks, and 32-36 weeks of pregnancy, participants were screened for depression using the World Health Organization's Composite International Diagnostic Interview Short Form (CIDI-SF). Women who gave at least one positive answer to the CIDI-SF depression-screening question were evaluated for depressive disorder using the non-patient version of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R (SCID-NP). Psychosocial stressors and two Big Five Personality dimensions, neuroticism and extraversion, were also evaluated.

Prevalence of depressive disorder.

The prevalence of the antenatal depressive disorder at 12-16 weeks' gestation was 6.1%, at 22-26 weeks 3.5%, and at 32-36 weeks 4.4%. In the first trimester, a greater prevalence of current depressive disorder was independently associated with unplanned and unwanted pregnancy, high neuroticism, low education, and a previous history of depression; in the second trimester with unplanned and unwanted pregnancy and high neuroticism; in the third trimester with unplanned and unwanted pregnancy, high neuroticism, and the occurrence of psychosocial stressors during the last year.

The highest prevalence of depressive disorders was found in the first trimester, the lowest in mid-pregnancy. Several determinants (unwanted and unplanned pregnancy, high neuroticism) were independent predictors of antenatal depressive disorders throughout whole pregnancy, while other determinants (low education, previous history of depression, the occurrence of psychosocial stressors at the end of pregnancy) were trimester specific.