Dataset Information

Rates of self-reported postpartum depressive symptoms in the United States before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABSTRACT:

Background

This study aimed to determine the relationship between the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in postpartum depressive symptoms (PDS) in individuals in the United States. Further analyses explored how these changes related to state-level measures of pandemic severity, economic hardship, and social isolation.

Methods

Data were collected from users of the Flo mobile health application who completed a survey about their mood within 90 days of giving birth. Analyses assessed changes in national and state-level self-reported PDS from a pre-pandemic period (N = 159,478) to a pandemic period (N = 118,622). Linear regression determined which state-level pandemic severity or economic factors were associated with changes in PDS.

Results

National rates of PDS increased from 6.5% (pre-pandemic) to 6.9% (pandemic). There was a significant increase in PDS over the course of the pandemic timeframe. Linear regressions revealed a negative association between percent change in PDS across states and COVID-19 deaths per 100 K residents as well as 2020 women's unemployment rate. There was no association between change in PDS and COVID-19 cases per 100 K residents, percent job loss, percent change in women's unemployment rate, or percentage of population staying at home.

Conclusions

There was a national increase in PDS that worsened over the course of a year following the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. States with a greater increase in PDS tended to show overall fewer deaths from COVID-19 and lower women's unemployment rates. Further work is needed to identify what individual-level factors may be driving these differences.

SUBMITTER: Bajaj MA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9022477 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Rates of self-reported postpartum depressive symptoms in the United States before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bajaj Mira A MA Salimgaraev Rodion R Zhaunova Liudmila L Payne Jennifer L JL

Journal of psychiatric research 20220421

<h4>Background</h4>This study aimed to determine the relationship between the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in postpartum depressive symptoms (PDS) in individuals in the United States. Further analyses explored how these changes related to state-level measures of pandemic severity, economic hardship, and social isolation.<h4>Methods</h4>Data were collected from users of the Flo mobile health application who completed a survey about their mood within 90 days of giving birth. Analyses ...[more]

PMID: 35477074

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Project description:ImportanceMarked elevation in levels of depressive symptoms compared with historical norms have been described during the COVID-19 pandemic, and understanding the extent to which these are associated with diminished in-person social interaction could inform public health planning for future pandemics or other disasters.ObjectiveTo describe the association between living in a US county with diminished mobility during the COVID-19 pandemic and self-reported depressive symptoms, while accounting for potential local and state-level confounding factors.Design, setting, and participantsThis survey study used 18 waves of a nonprobability internet survey conducted in the United States between May 2020 and April 2022. Participants included respondents who were 18 years and older and lived in 1 of the 50 US states or Washington DC.Main outcome and measureDepressive symptoms measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9); county-level community mobility estimates from mobile apps; COVID-19 policies at the US state level from the Oxford stringency index.ResultsThe 192 271 survey respondents had a mean (SD) of age 43.1 (16.5) years, and 768 (0.4%) were American Indian or Alaska Native individuals, 11 448 (6.0%) were Asian individuals, 20 277 (10.5%) were Black individuals, 15 036 (7.8%) were Hispanic individuals, 1975 (1.0%) were Pacific Islander individuals, 138 702 (72.1%) were White individuals, and 4065 (2.1%) were individuals of another race. Additionally, 126 381 respondents (65.7%) identified as female and 65 890 (34.3%) as male. Mean (SD) depression severity by PHQ-9 was 7.2 (6.8). In a mixed-effects linear regression model, the mean county-level proportion of individuals not leaving home was associated with a greater level of depression symptoms (β, 2.58; 95% CI, 1.57-3.58) after adjustment for individual sociodemographic features. Results were similar after the inclusion in regression models of local COVID-19 activity, weather, and county-level economic features, and persisted after widespread availability of COVID-19 vaccination. They were attenuated by the inclusion of state-level pandemic restrictions. Two restrictions, mandatory mask-wearing in public (β, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.15-0.30) and policies cancelling public events (β, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.22-0.51), demonstrated modest independent associations with depressive symptom severity.Conclusions and relevanceIn this study, depressive symptoms were greater in locales and times with diminished community mobility. Strategies to understand the potential public health consequences of pandemic responses are needed.

Dataset Information

Rates of self-reported postpartum depressive symptoms in the United States before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Rates of self-reported postpartum depressive symptoms in the United States before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Similar Datasets

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