Depression in pregnant women with and without COVID-19

Alissa Papadopoulos; Emily S Nichols; Yalda Mohsenzadeh; Isabelle Giroux; Michelle F Mottola; Ryan J Van Lieshout; Emma G Duerden

doi:10.1192/bjo.2021.1010

Depression in pregnant women with and without COVID-19

BJPsych Open. 2021 Sep 21;7(5):e173. doi: 10.1192/bjo.2021.1010. eCollection 2021 Sep.

Authors

Alissa Papadopoulos¹, Emily S Nichols², Yalda Mohsenzadeh³, Isabelle Giroux⁴, Michelle F Mottola⁵, Ryan J Van Lieshout⁶, Emma G Duerden⁷

Affiliations

¹ Applied Psychology, Faculty of Education, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
² Applied Psychology, Faculty of Education, and The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
³ The Brain and Mind Institute and Department of Computer Science, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
⁴ School of Nutrition Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, and Insititut du Savoir Monfort, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
⁵ R. Samuel McLaughlin Foundation - Exercise and Pregnancy Laboratory, School of Kinesiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Children's Health Research Institute, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
⁶ Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
⁷ Applied Psychology, Faculty of Education, The Brain and Mind Institute, and Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.

Abstract

Evidence suggests that pregnant women who test positive for COVID-19 may develop more severe illness than non-pregnant women and may be at greater risk for psychological distress. The relationship between COVID-19 status (positive, negative, never tested) and symptoms of depression was examined in a survey study (May to September 2020) of pregnant women (n = 869). Pregnant women who reported testing positive for COVID-19 were significantly more likely to report depressive symptoms compared with women who tested negative (P = 0.027) and women who were never tested (P = 0.005). Findings indicate that pregnant women who test positive for COVID-19 should be screened and monitored for depressive symptoms.

Keywords: Perinatal psychiatry; depressive disorders; low- and middle-income countries; primary care; rating scales.