Academic performance in children of mothers with perinatal depressive disorder

Maternal perinatal depression is a well-established risk factor for adverse child developmental outcomes; however, its long-term association with academic achievement remains unclear. This study examined its association with children's academic performance across multiple stages of schooling.

Data were drawn from the New South Wales Perinatal Data Collection, linked with the New South Wales Admitted Patient Data Collection and the New South Wales National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy. Maternal perinatal depressive disorders were identified from hospital admission records using the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Australian Modification codes. Academic performance was assessed using the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy results in Grades 3, 5 and 7. Outcomes were classified as meeting or not meeting the national minimum standards in reading, spelling, writing, grammar and numeracy. Generalised estimating equations and propensity score matching were applied to examine associations.

After adjustment and matching, maternal perinatal depressive disorders were associated with increased odds of children not meeting the national minimum standards in reading (odds ratio = 1.24, 95% confidence interval = [1.10, 1.41]), spelling (odds ratio = 1.28, 95% confidence interval = [1.13, 1.46]), writing (odds ratio = 1.32, 95% confidence interval = [1.19, 1.47]) and grammar (odds ratio = 1.18, 95% confidence interval = [1.06, 1.33]), but not numeracy (odds ratio = 1.10, 95% confidence interval = [0.96, 1.27]). Associations were more consistent for antenatal depression, while postnatal depression was associated with reading and writing only.

Children of mothers with perinatal depressive disorders showed an association with suboptimal academic performance, particularly in literacy-related domains. The stronger associations observed for antenatal depression suggest that early gestational exposure may affect foundational cognitive and socio-emotional development, highlighting the importance of timely identification and treatment of maternal depression during pregnancy to support long-term educational outcomes.