Investigating the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale Cut-Off Point and Predictors of Paternal Postnatal Depression in Fathers: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Only 77 of 240 fathers completed the psychiatric interview used to set the EPDS cutoff, so the cutoff rests on a subset. The sample was limited to Iranian fathers attending public healthcare centers, and the authors note lack of diversity in ethnicity and marital status. Fathers with a history of depression or antidepressant or substance use were excluded, so the findings may not apply to fathers with known prior depression. The EPDS was self-reported, and response accuracy may be affected by stigma or reluctance. Screening occurred across a wide postpartum window, from 6-7 weeks to 12 months. The reference standard was a psychiatrist's DSM-5 diagnostic interview, described as expert diagnostic opinion. Associations from logistic regression do not show that any factor caused paternal postnatal depression. The authors state the cutoff requires validation in another sample.

The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was funded by the Research Vice-Chancellor of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences.

Do not treat an EPDS score above 7 as a diagnosis of paternal postnatal depression. It is a screening cutoff derived from 77 fathers who completed a psychiatric interview, and the authors say it needs validation in another sample.