A scoping study of postpartum mental health problems and associated factors: opportunities for research and practice

To provide an overview of mental health problems throughout the postpartum period and to describe the screening instruments as well as associated factors related to the relevant population.

The scoping study was guided by the framework outlined by Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guideline was used to report the findings including citation backtracking.

Of the 2828 studies screened, 43 met the inclusion criteria, and three key categories were identified: postpartum mental health problems, screening instruments, and associated factors, including support systems, previous mental and medical conditions, and other associated factors. Sub-categories in the support systems included partner, family, social, and work support, while subcategories in the other associated factors included socioeconomic and sociodemographic, pregnancy and birth, partner violence, mode of delivery, gender preference, COVID-19, and immigration status.

A comprehensive approach to postpartum mental health problems is necessary to understand protective factors needed at all levels. It is imperative to offer a spectrum of support services and ensure high availability of care to all relevant subgroups of mothers throughout pregnancy and up to one year postpartum. Inconsistent use of screening instruments at different periods indicates a need for harmonized use in clinical settings to mitigate the risk of women being undiagnosed. Training healthcare professionals in the area of assessment and management of postpartum mental health problems will significantly help in alleviating the challanges women face during this period.