Perinatal depressive symptoms in Portuguese new fathers and mothers during COVID-19 pandemic

• Published in: European psychiatry 2023-03, Vol.66 (S1), p.S784-S785
• Main Authors: Pereira, D., Macedo, A., Cabaços, C., Wildenberg, B., Madeira, N., Pereira, A. T.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abstract; COVID-19; e-Poster Viewing; Medical screening; Mental depression; Mothers; Pandemics; Postpartum depression
• ISSN: 0924-9338; 1778-3585
• DOI: 10.1192/j.eurpsy.2023.1656

IntroductionPostpartum depression, refers to depressive symptoms within a 12-month period after the birth of an infant in a new father or mother. It’s have been a growing mental health concern, as it is one of the leading causes of poor familial and infant health outcomes. Despite the growing attention being given to fathers’ depression, including in Portugal, prevalence data and its possible correlates are still scarce compared to depression in mothers, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.ObjectivesTo explore and compare levels of depressive symptomatology and to analyze potential correlates for postpartum depression in Portuguese new mothers and fathers during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods153 men and 187 women (mean age: 36.61± 4.99 vs. 32.98 ±5.00 years, respectively) were recruited in the perinatal period (7.29±3.22 vs 8.58± 0.97 months post-partum) and answered to an online survey that included questions related to sociodemographic and psychosocial variables and validated questionnaires: Perinatal Depression Screening Scale (PDSS), Perseverative Thinking Questionnaire (for Repetitive Negative Thinking/RNT) and Dysfunctional Beliefs Towards Motherhood/Fatherhood Scale (DBTM/F). Statistical analysis was performed using IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS Version 26 for Mac).ResultsNew-mothers had significantly higher levels of depressive symptoms than new-fathers (41.89±16.94 VS. 33.95±14.99, p