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The first three years: The association of early postpartum depressive symptoms with infant and toddler development

Saralee Glasser1, Moshe Uziel2, Shir Wagman3

  • 1Women and Children's Health Research Unit, Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research, Sheba Medical Center, affiliated with Tel Aviv University, Ramat Gan, Israel.

Public Health Nursing (Boston, Mass.)
|December 22, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) is linked to developmental delays in children up to age three. Early PPD symptom screening is crucial for identifying children at risk for developmental challenges.

Area of Science:

  • Child Development
  • Maternal Mental Health
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Postpartum depression (PPD) significantly impacts child development.
  • The relationship between PPD and developmental outcomes is of considerable professional and practical interest.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between early postpartum depressive symptoms and child developmental domains.
  • To identify potential risks to child development linked to maternal mental health.

Main Methods:

  • A large-scale historical cohort study of 574,282 children in Israel (2014-2020).
  • Mothers completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) postnatally.
  • Child development was assessed up to 36 months across fine/gross motor, language/communication, and social/behavioral domains.

Main Results:

  • Children of mothers with EPDS scores ≥10 showed higher rates of failure to meet developmental milestones.
  • This association was observed across all developmental domains evaluated.

Conclusions:

  • Early maternal depressive symptoms are associated with a failure to meet developmental milestones in children up to three years.
  • Findings support interventions focused on maternal well-being, child development, and health policy.
  • Highlights the importance of integrating PPD screening into routine maternal and child healthcare.
Abstract

Keywords:
Postpartum depressionfine motor developmentgross motor developmentlanguage/communication developmentsocial/behavioral development

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