TITLE:
Prevalence of Depression and Anxiety Disorders in Peri-Natal Sudanese Women and Associated Risks Factors
AUTHORS:
Abdelgadir H. Osman, Taissier Y. Hagar, Abdelaziz A. Osman, Hussein Suliaman
KEYWORDS:
Prenatal, Postnatal, Peri-Natal, Depression, Anxiety, Psychiatric Morbidities, Risks Factors
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Psychiatry,
Vol.5 No.4,
October
15,
2015
ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study
was to estimate a point prevalence of depression and anxiety disorders among
Sudanese peri-natal women attending ant-natal and postnatal clinics in the
capital city of Sudan. Simultaneously, to examine the associated risks factors.
Participants were 945 peri-natal women in two main women antenatal and post
natal clinics in the Capital City of Sudan screened consecutively. They were
divided into two groups. The first group was of, Four Hundreds eighty (480)
women in their third trimester, and the second group consisted of Four Hundreds
Sixty Five (465) women in the first 10 week of postnatal period. All
participants were screened, using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Hospital
Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS), and Personal information Questionnaire
(PIQ) for collecting socio-demographic, personal, medical, social and family
history data. Routine urine and blood results were recorded. Results: 59% of
prenatal and 46% of postnatal women suffered from high levels of distress in
the form of mixed anxiety and depressive symptoms. However, only 20.9% of
peri-natal women suffered of moderate to severe depression. Over 90% of the depressed
women were not formally diagnosed or received psychiatric help. Poor marital
relationship, physical co-morbidity, positive family history and past
psychiatric history of depression were the main significant risk factors
associated with perinatal depression and anxiety. Conclusion: Contrary to the
commonly held views that perinatal women are mainly plighted with depression as
the main mental illness, this study confirms initial findings that, anxiety
disorder is far more prevalent and more distressing to this vulnerable group.
Moreover, psychiatric morbidities in both prenatal and postnatal periods
attract high prevalence rates in low income countries. Maternal health policies
in low income countries must incorporate routine screening for mental health status,
basic support and interventions for mental illnesses in perinatal women.
Depression and emotional disorders in perinatal women should be seen as
important public health priority.