Observational Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2024. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Jan 19, 2024; 14(1): 119-127
Published online Jan 19, 2024. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v14.i1.119
Postpartum depression and partner support during the period of lactation: Correlation research and its influencing factors
Ji-Ming Ruan, Ling-Juan Wu
Ji-Ming Ruan, Ling-Juan Wu, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Huzhou Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital, Huzhou 313000, Zhejiang Province, China
Author contributions: Ruan JM acquired the data and drafted the first version of the paper; Wu LJ acquired and interpreted the data, and critically appraised the paper; all authors have approved the version to be published.
Supported by Medical Health Science and Technology Project of Huzhou City, No. 2022GY41.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the Huzhou Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital (Zhejiang Province).
Informed consent statement: All study participants, or their legal guardian, provided informed written consent prior to study enrollment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: There are no conflicts of interest to report.
Data sharing statement: Data used in this study were obtained from the corresponding author.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Ling-Juan Wu, BSc, Nurse, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Huzhou Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital, No. 2 East Street, Yuehe Street, Wuxing District, Huzhou 313000, Zhejiang Province, China. wulingjuan110@163.com
Received: October 26, 2023
Peer-review started: October 26, 2023
First decision: November 8, 2023
Revised: November 20, 2023
Accepted: December 5, 2023
Article in press: December 5, 2023
Published online: January 19, 2024
Processing time: 85 Days and 8.2 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND

Postpartum depression (PPD) not only affects the psychological and physiological aspects of maternal health but can also affect neonatal growth and development. Partners who are in close contact with parturient women play a key role in communication and emotional support. This study explores the PPD support relationship with partners and its influencing factors, which is believed to establish psychological well-being and improve maternal partner support.

AIM

To explore the correlation between PPD and partner support during breastfeeding and its influencing factors.

METHODS

Convenience sampling was used to select lactating women (200 women) who underwent postpartum examinations at the Huzhou Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital from July 2022 to December 2022. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on the basic information (general information questionnaire), depression level [edinburgh postnatal depression scale (EPDS)], and partner support score [dyadic coping inventory (DCI)] of the selected subjects. Pearson’s correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between PPD and DCI in lactating women. Factors affecting PPD levels during lactation were analyzed using multiple linear regression.

RESULTS

The total average score of EPDS in 200 lactating women was (9.52 ± 1.53), and the total average score of DCI was (115.78 ± 14.90). Dividing the EPDS, the dimension scores were: emotional loss (1.91 ± 0.52), anxiety (3.84 ± 1.05), and depression (3.76 ± 0.96). Each dimension of the DCI was subdivided into: Pressure communication (26.79±6.71), mutual support (39.76 ± 9.63), negative support (24.97 ± 6.68), agent support (6.87 ± 1.92), and joint support (17.39 ± 4.19). Pearson’s correlation analysis demonstrated that the total mean score and individual dimension scores of EPDS during breastfeeding were inversely correlated with the total score of partner support, stress communication, mutual support, and co-support (P < 0.05). The total mean score of the EPDS and its dimensions were positively correlated with negative support (P < 0.05). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that the main factors affecting PPD during breastfeeding were marital harmony, newborn health, stress communication, mutual support, negative support, co-support, and the total score of partner support (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

PPD during breastfeeding was associated with marital harmony, newborn health, stress communication, mutual support, negative support, joint support, and the total DCI score.

Keywords: Lactation period; Puerpera; Postpartum depression; Partner support; Correlation

Core Tip: Lactating women face both physical and psychological pressures and are prone to postpartum depression (PPD), bipolar disorder, and other mental disorders. The partner is a close contact for the mother during this time, and their communication with the mother or behavioral decisions are crucial. Through this study, we found that during breastfeeding, mothers’ PPD, degree of marital harmony, newborn health situation, and partner support were associated.