Risk and protective factors for postpartum depression among Polish women – a prospective study

Abstract

This prospective study conducted at a single center in 2022 aims to identify risk and protective factors for postpartum depression (PPD) in Polish women and to assess the impact of pregnancy, delivery, the postpartum period, and psychosocial factors on PPD. After delivery and 4 weeks later, 311 women filled out two questionnaires of our design related to risk factors for PPD. Immune Power Personality Questionnaire, Walsh Family Resilience Questionnaire, and Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale were also applied. The predictors of PPD identified at two time points included: use of antidepressants, previous depressive episodes, family history of depression, risk of preterm delivery, anxiety about child’s health, and breastfeeding and sleep problems. Risk factors for PPD found only after delivery were: suicidal ideation before pregnancy, stressful life events, premature rupture of the membranes, and cesarean section. Inhalation analgesia during labor reduced the PPD frequency. At 4 weeks’ postpartum, regular physical activity was also predictive of PPD, while breastfeeding, financial satisfaction, and sufficient sleep duration were protective factors. PPD after delivery was negatively correlated with capacity to confide, hardiness, assertiveness, self-complexity, and communication. PPD at 4 weeks postpartum decreased belief systems, organization patterns, and communication. Two proposed self-designed questionnaires can be useful for effectively screening PPD in the Polish population.

Keywords:

• Edinburgh postnatal depression scale
• Polish women
• postnatal depression
• screening for postpartum depression
• self-completion questionnaires

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Anna Jesionek, PhD (Proper Medical Writing sp. z o.o.) for medical writing support and Dorota Szymańska (Proper Medical Writing sp. z o.o.) for editorial support. This research received no funding.

Author contributions

SK and MB conceived and designed the study. SK collected the data. DŚ performed statistical analysis.

Ethical approval

The study was approved by Bioethics Commission at the District. Medical Chamber in Gdansk (KB − 39/22). All participants gave informed written consent prior to their inclusion in the study and were informed about the publication of study results.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.