Prevalence and Factors Affecting Pregnancy Depression: A Systematic Review

Depression during pregnancy is a common disorder affecting numerous women; nonetheless, no study has been conducted to summarize the factors affecting this mental disorder. Due to this knowledge gap, preventive measures have not been performed for these women. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the prevalence and factors affecting gestational depression.

This systematic review study made a query for articles published in ProQuest, science direct, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, Medline, SID, Iran doc, and Google Scholar in five years preceding 2019 using such keywords as depression, risk factor, pregnancy and mental health based on PRISMA steps.

Out of 211 retrieved articles, 6 high-quality ones were included in the present study. The prevalence of depression during pregnancy was obtained at 11.8%-24.94%. The most important factors affecting gestational depression included unwanted pregnancy, previous history of depression, and history of abortion.

Pregnancy depression affects one in four women. Some factors, such as unwanted pregnancy, previous history of depression, history of miscarriage, high-risk pregnancy, history of stillbirth, history of preterm delivery, as well as such family problems as violence against women and marital problems, are some of the factors affecting pregnancy depression.