Perinatal depression: The role of maternal adverse childhood experiences and social support

Abstract

Background: A strong association between the number of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and the risk of maternal depression has been demonstrated; however, this association has not been examined with regards to changes in depression across the perinatal period. The objectives of this longitudinal study were to: (1) determine whether ACEs predict depressive symptomology in pregnancy and the postpartum period; (2) test the relative contribution of ACEs, with other established risks of depression, including social support, and (3) examine whether the association between ACEs and depression across the perinatal period vary as a function of social support.

Methods: Data from 1994 women were collected from a prospective pregnancy cohort. Women completed questionnaires related to ACEs prior to the age of 18. In pregnancy and at 4 months postpartum, social support was measured using the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey and clinical cut-off scores for depression were assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale.

Results: Logistic regression demonstrated that after accounting for sociodemographic factors and social support, ACEs predicted depressive symptoms in pregnancy (AOR = =1.26, CI = =1.12-1.43), the postpartum period (AOR = =1.34, CI = =1.17-1.52), and across the perinatal period (AOR = =1.31, CI = =1.12-1.54). Social support did not moderate the association between maternal ACEs and depression for any time point.

Limitations: retrospective and self-report nature of the data.

Conclusion: ACEs and low social support are both risk factors for depression, however low social support predicted the highest odds of depression, indicating the importance of asking about social support in pregnant and postpartum women.

Keywords: Adverse childhood experiences; Maternal depression; Postpartum; Pregnancy; Social support.