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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Van M. Ta, PhD, MPH, University of California, SF, CA, , vanmta@alumni.usc.edu, Hee-Soon Juon, PhD, Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, 624 N. Broadway, #712, Baltimore, MD 21205, Andrea C. Gielen, ScD, ScM, Health, Behavior & Society, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 624 North Broadway, 7th floor, Baltimore, MD 21205, Donald Steinwachs, PhD, MS, Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, 624 N. Broadway, Room 652, Baltimore, MD 21205, and Anne Duggan, ScD, Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 1620 McElderry St, Reed Hall, Room 204, Baltimore, MD 21205.

Background. Maternal depression is a condition known to be associated with abuse and neglect of a child, but previous research has yielded varying estimates of the prevalence of depression among Asian Pacific Islanders (API) mothers. Specific Aims 1) Estimate the prevalence of depressive symptoms over time among API women; and 2) Determine racial differences in the course of depressive symptoms over time. Research Design and Methods. A longitudinal analysis was conducted using data from an experimental study of a home-based family support program for families assessed to be at-risk (AR) for child maltreatment (“Hawaii Healthy Start Program”). Within this sample, 64.3% of mothers scored at moderate risk and 35.7% at severe risk. With the use of three waves of data from 1994 (baseline), 1997, and 2000-2001, a Center for Epidemiological-Studies (CES-D) score ≥16 defined the presence of depressive symptoms. Preliminary Results. Of 625 mothers, over 30% had depressive symptoms at each time point, but there were no racial differences in the prevalence in depressive symptoms over time. There was a significant interaction between severe risk and race: Among mothers with severe risk, the depressive symptoms among Asians (OR=5.5, 95% CI: 1.3, 23.3) and Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islanders (OR=4.9, 95% CI: 1.3, 18.2) were higher than those of Whites. Conclusion. Results highlight a high prevalence of depressive symptoms among this sample. Future studies should investigate the reasons why having a higher degree of risk leads to a higher odds of having depressive symptoms among API women compared with Whites.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize racial disparities in mental health.
• Better understand the risk factors associated with having depressive symptoms among women over time.

Keywords: Depression, Asian and Pacific Islander Women

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered

Handout (.pdf format, 206.1 kb)