A Comparative Study of Postpartum Depression in Abused and Nonabused Women

Because of a rise in postpartum depression (PPD), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently indicated a need for more studies of possible risk factors for PPD. PPD can continue for months or years after birth and has consequences for the family as a whole. Past research has not investigated the relationships between abuse, whether physical, sexual, or emotional, and PPD. The aim of this pilot study was to compare the prevalence of PPD among abused and non-abused women during the first 4 months after birth. Although 89 women initially enrolled in the study, only 50 participants completed the 1-week data collection. Of these 50, 30% reported previous or current physical or sexual abuse. Of these 50 participants, 22 dropped out during the 4-month-long study, resulting in a final sample size of 28. Abused women were significantly more depressed at 1 week and 2 and 3 months postpartum than the non-abused group until their depression scores at entry into the study and 1 week were statistically controlled. An unexpected finding was the prevalence of depression at 1 week after birth, indicative of unresolved prenatal depression, "baby blues," or true PPD. In addition, emotional abuse was reported by both groups and was significantly higher for the previously abused women. Although sample size and high attrition limit generalization, there was no significant difference in the prevalence of PPD between the two groups. Future research should explore the relationships between abuse and depression with larger samples and include pregnant subjects.