Neural response to reward and psychosocial risk factors independently predict antenatal depressive symptoms

While psychosocial risk factors for peripartum depression are well-researched, studies on neural risk factors are scarce. Previous studies suggest a blunted neural response to reward may be a biomarker of depression and risk. In a sample of 86 pregnant women, the present study examined whether a reduced Reward Positivity (RewP), an event-related potential (ERP) elicited to feedback indicating monetary reward, relates to greater antenatal depressive symptoms. We also examined whether the RewP explains unique variance in antenatal depressive symptoms relative to other indices of risk, including annual income, history of a major depressive episodes, and score on a validated psychosocial risk measure, the Pregnancy Risk Questionnaire (PRQ). Zero-order correlations revealed that lower annual income, greater PRQ scores, and a blunted RewP were associated with greater antenatal depressive symptoms. The RewP and PRQ scores were identified as the best predictors of antenatal depressive symptoms in a stepwise regression, and together predicted 48 percent of the variance in antenatal depressive symptoms. PRQ scores accounted for 44% of the variance in antenatal depressive symptoms while the RewP accounted for 4% of additional incremental variance. This is the first study to combine self-report and neural activity to examine depressive symptoms in pregnant women. Future directions for research on perinatal depression are discussed.