Psychiatric morbidity associated with caesarean section: a study from Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, Nigeria

Abstract

Fifty-five women who presented at Wesley Guild Hospital, Ilesa, Nigeria, for either elective or emergency caesarean section during a 5-month period (1 December 2003 - 30 April 2004) were recruited consecutively and assessed for psychiatric morbidity using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-30), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the State Version of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Twenty-two women (40%), were cases on the GHQ, and the BDI was able to pick 11 women with depression in the study sample. The mean anxiety score for the entire study population was 41.7, which was higher than the usually accepted threshold of 40 for clinical disorder on the scale. Thirty-three women (60%) were initially reluctant to give consent for the operation and they had higher mean STAI scores than those who willingly consented to the procedure, and the difference in scores was statistically significant. The implications of these findings are discussed.