Postpartum Depression and Anxiety Screening During Ponseti Casting.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Orthopedics
• Maternal Mental Health
• Public Health

Background:

• Congenital clubfoot is a common birth anomaly impacting infants and parental well-being.
• Maternal psychological health is significantly affected by infant diagnoses like clubfoot.
• Early identification of postpartum mood disorders is essential for timely intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the prevalence of postpartum depression and/or anxiety symptoms in mothers of infants treated for clubfoot.
• To assess the utility of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) in a clubfoot clinic setting.
• To identify potential associations between positive screening results and clinical/demographic factors.

Main Methods:

• The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) was administered to 56 mothers of infants with clubfoot.
• Screening occurred during the initial Ponseti casting visit for infants under 4 months old.
• Data analysis involved descriptive statistics and nonparametric tests, utilizing electronic medical records.

Main Results:

• 10.7% of mothers screened positive for postpartum depression (EPDS score ≥10).
• Commonly endorsed symptoms included difficulty coping and anxiety (50.0% each).
• Positive EPDS scores were significantly associated with subsequent evaluation by an orthopedic clinical psychologist (P=0.022).

Conclusions:

• The EPDS is a valuable screening tool for clubfoot clinics.
• While many mothers experience anxiety/depressive symptoms, clinical postpartum depression rates are similar to the general population.
• Integrating postpartum depression screening addresses critical mental health needs of families undergoing clubfoot treatment.