Impact of postpartum depression on quality of life

Abstract

Introduction

Women during the postpartum period experience many physiological, psychological, and social changes. Quality of life (QOL) is a sense of well-being and arises from satisfaction or dissatisfaction with various aspects of life including health, employment, socioeconomic state, psychological-emotional state, and family.

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to identify influence of childbirth experience and postpartum depression on QOL.

Methods

This is a descriptive cross-sectional study regarding 150 postpartum women receiving cares in the hospital of Sfax and examined during the first and the sixth week post-delivery. Data collection tools in this study were demographic questionnaire, Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), and world health organization quality of life-bref (WHOQOL-bref). Data were analyzed using SPSS.

Results

The mean age of our sample (n = 150) was 29.61 years. During the sixth week study period, 126 of 150 were examined.

A personal psychiatric history of depression was found in 9.3% of cases.

The current pregnancy was undesired in 15.3% of cases.

The prevalence of postpartum depression in the first week was 14.7% and 19.8% in the sixth week after delivery.

The mean score of quality of life was 81.62 ± 9.09.

Scores of quality of life and all its dimensions were significantly lower in depressive women.

Conclusion

Because enormous changes develop in postpartum women, we suggest supportive measures for mother by her mother-in-law family, and caregivers to improve the QOL and health status of the mother and her child and to prevent postpartum depression.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.