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Abused Pregnant Women Twice As Likely To Suffer Postnatal Depression
Researchers from The University of Bristol have found women who are psychologically abused during pregnancy are twice as likely to suffer postnatal depression.
The study, which was carried out between July 2005 and December 2006, looked at the experiences of 1,133 mothers-to-be in Brazil, and found a strong link between mental violence and the post pregnancy condition.
The women, who were attending primary health-care clinics, were interviewed while they were pregnant and after delivery.
270 women (26%) had postnatal depression. The most common form of partner violence was psychological (28%).
Frequency of psychological violence during pregnancy was linked with postnatal depression. Women reporting the highest frequency of psychological violence were more than twice as likely to have postnatal depression.
Professor Glynn Lewis, from The University of Bristol told us the data will be useful all over the world:
"What needs to happen now is to understand a lot more about why psychological violence occurs in relationships, and perhaps try to work with people in which this is an issue, to reduce the levels of psychological violence, and work on interventions which might be helpful for women and their partners."
Dr Ana Bernarda Ludermir, of the Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Brazil said:
"We recorded a clear positive association between the frequency of psychological violence during pregnancy and the occurrence of postnatal depression, even after adjustments. As in previous studies, psychological violence was much more common than was physical or sexual violence. About 10 per cent of the burden of postnatal depression could be attributed to partner violence during pregnancy, with most attributable to psychological violence, which was the most common form of violence in our study.”
She concluded: "Partner violence is increasingly becoming recognised as an important public health problem worldwide. However, psychological violence is often not identified because of the emphasis placed on the detection of physical and sexual violence.
"Prenatal care could provide an opportunity for improved detection by health-care professionals, but the precise role of health providers in identification of partner violence against women needs further elucidation. Interventions that might prevent psychological violence, or help to treat the consequences of such violence, should reduce the substantial burden of postnatal depression that affects mothers, children, and the health system as a whole.”
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