Objectives: To analyze the link between intimate partner violence (IPV) reported in the past year and depressive symptoms in pregnant Mexican women.
Material and methods: The data were obtained from the National Addictions Survey (ENA) 2008. For the purposes of this paper, we analyzed a sample of women over 18 who reported being pregnant at the time of the interview (n = 250). When this number is weighted at the population level, it represents 881,575 women across the country. The χ2 test was used to analyze demographic characteristics, prevalence of depressive symptoms and intimate partner violence. A multiple logistic regression was performed to estimate predictors of depressive symptoms during pregnancy.
Results: The prevalence of any type of intimate partner violence (IPV) was 5.4% and of depressive symptoms was 16.2% (CES-D ≥ 16). A total of 53.4% of pregnant women who reported IPV during the past year had depressive symptoms whereas this occurred in 14.1% of those who had not been victimized. The variables that predicted depressive symptoms during pregnancy were having been a victim of IPV (OR = 6.23) and having nine years or less of schooling (OR = 5.26). Working outside the home and family income level did not increase the risk of depressive symptoms in this population.
Conclusions: This population study, representative at the national level, provides an initial overview of the link between intimate partner violence and depressive symptoms in pregnant women in México. The results highlight the need to expand research on the topics covered, as well as to detect both phenomena in a timely manner during pregnancy in order to propose the necessary care.