Risk of depression during pregnancy in usual risk antenatal care.
Mônica Maria de Jesus Silva, Tainah Barbosa de Moraes Serrano, Giovanna da Silva Porcel and 2 others
PMID 37493727WHAT IT FOUND
Most pregnant women in routine care scored at high risk for depression.
Unemployed women were twice as likely to be at high risk. Screening during prenatal visits can identify these women early, especially if they lack employment or income security.
Key findings
01A high risk of depression during pregnancy was observed in 62.2% (137) of pregnant women receiving routine prenatal care.
02Pregnant women without a job were twice more likely to be at a higher risk of depression during pregnancy compared to pregnant women with a job.
03The mean risk of depression score was 6.15, where a score of 5 or higher indicates a higher risk.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The cross-sectional design prevents establishing causal relationships or temporal sequences between unemployment and depression risk. Data collection occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have artificially elevated depression rates due to external stressors and uncertainties. The sample consisted of women attending a specific public maternity hospital in Brazil, limiting generalizability to other populations or healthcare systems. The study excluded women who could not read or write, potentially omitting a vulnerable subgroup from the analysis.
Declared interests
The study was supported by a university internal grant (Programa de Apoio de Novos Docentes USP).
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret the high risk score as a diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder. The ERDEG scale identifies risk factors and symptoms, not clinical depression. Furthermore, the cross-sectional nature means unemployment did not necessarily cause the depression; the association is statistical, not causal.