• F Machado Ramírez, T García Serrano, N Moya Rüegg, N Bernabeu Sáez, and R Cerdá Díaz.
• Unidad Docente de Matronas, Hospital General y Unidad Docente de Medicina Familiar y Comunitaria de Albacete.
• Aten Primaria. 1997 Sep 15;20(4):161-6.

ObjectiveTo find the prevalence of postnatal depression in puerperal women in the city of Albacete and to analyse its association with social and demographic factors, morbidity and social and affective support.DesignAn observational crossover study with a home interview.SettingCommunity.Patients304 women who gave birth at Albacete General Hospital between May and November 1995.Measurements And Main ResultsThe presence of possible depression between the sixth and eighth weeks after giving birth was measured with a self-administered test, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), on which scores of 13 or more are considered to signal depression. 15.8% (C.I. 11.8%-19.8%) of the women surveyed suffered a probable depressive disorder according to the EPDS. A significant association was found between puerperal depression and history of depression before pregnancy (p = 0.00001), during pregnancy (p = 0.00005) and immediately after delivery (p = 0.00001). Puerperal depression was also associated with stated chronic illness (p = 0.0003), scant help with domestic tasks (p = 0.003) and low family affective support (p = 0.0003).ConclusionsBetween 11.8% and 19.8% of women between the sixth and eighth week of the puerperal period display a probable depression, which is linked to depression immediately after delivery. This disorder needs to be detected during the puerperal visit.

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