Screening for Antepartum Depression Through Community Health Outreach in Swaziland

Mats Målqvist*, Kelly Clarke, Themba Matsebula, Mattias Bergman, Mark Tomlinson

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

25 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Maternal depression, including antepartum and postpartum depression, is a neglected public health issue with potentially far-reaching effects on maternal and child health. We aimed to measure the burden of antepartum depression and identify risk factors among women in a peri-urban community in Swaziland. We conducted a cross-sectional study within the context of a community outreach peer support project involving “Mentor Mothers”. We used of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) to screen women for depression during the third trimester of pregnancy, using a cut-off score of ≥13 to indicate depression. We also collected demographic and socioeconomic factors, and assessed the association of these factors with EPDS score using logistic regression models. A total of 1038 pregnant women were screened over a period of 9 months. Almost a quarter (22.7 %) had EPDS scores ≥13 and 41.2 % were HIV positive. A fifth, 17.5 % were teenagers and 73.7 % were unemployed. Depression was not associated with HIV status, age or employment status. However, women with multiple socioeconomic stressors were found to be more likely to score highly on the EPDS. Depression was common among pregnant women in the peri-urban areas of Swaziland. Screening for depression using the EPDS is feasible and can be included in the community health worker standard tool box as a way to improve early detection of depression and to highlight the importance of maternal mental health as a core public health concern.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)946-952
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Community Health
Volume41
Issue number5
Early online date4 Mar 2016
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2016

Keywords

  • Antepartum depression
  • Community health
  • EPDS
  • Swaziland

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