• Katerina Koutra, Maria Vassilaki, Vaggelis Georgiou, Antonios Koutis, Panos Bitsios, Leda Chatzi, and Manolis Kogevinas.
• Department of Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Crete, PO Box 2208, 71003, Heraklion, Crete, Greece, koutra.k@gmail.com.
• Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2014 May 1; 49 (5): 711-21.

PurposeAntenatal maternal mental health has been identified as an important determinant of postpartum depression (PPD). We investigated the occurrence of depression both antenatally and postnatally and examined whether maternal trait anxiety and depression during pregnancy were associated with PPD at 8 weeks postpartum in a prospective mother-child cohort (Rhea Study) in Crete, Greece.Methods438 women completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Trait subscale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-Trait) questionnaires assessing antenatal depression and anxiety, respectively, during the third trimester of pregnancy as well as the EPDS at 8 weeks postpartum.ResultsThe prevalence of women with probable depression (EPDS score ≥13) was 16.7 % at 28-32 weeks of pregnancy and 13.0 % at 8 weeks postpartum. A per 5 unit increase in the STAI-Trait subscale increased the odds for PPD by 70 % (OR = 1.70, 95 % CI 1.41, 2.05), whereas a per unit increase in EPDS during pregnancy increased the odds for PPD by 27 % (OR = 1.27, 95 % CI 1.19, 1.36).ConclusionsOur findings suggest that antenatal maternal psychological well-being has a significant effect on PPD, which might have important implications for early detection during pregnancy of women at risk for postpartum depression.

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