Postpartum Depression and Perinatal Intimate Partner Abuse in Physically Abused Women

Postpartum Depression (PPD) has been shown to increase irritability, fatigue, and have negative effects on the attachment between the mother and newborn. The purpose of this study was to 1) examine differences in PPD prevalence across sociodemographic characteristics; 2) examine social support, education, and recent traumatic events as predictors of PPD and 3) examine perinatal IPV and employment as predictors of PPD. This study examines the Domestic Violence Enhanced Home Visitation (DOVE) quantitative data collected at baseline (31 weeks pregnant or less) & three months post natal for 162 participants. Outcome measures included the Edinburgh Depression Scale, Severity of Violence Against Women (SVAWS), the Davidson Trauma Scale (DTS), and the Prenatal Psychosocial Profile (PPP). The mean age was 23 years, 38% lived in an urban environment, and 49% were African American. The sample prevalence for PPD was 27%, with those from an urban setting having significantly higher depression scores than those from a rural setting (p=.003). A linear regression model was calculated to examine significant predictors of PPD in the sample. Social support from other people (Beta=-.080, 95% CI: [-.150,-.010], p=.026) and the participant's risk of repeat partner violence (Beta=-.326, 95% CI: [-.638,-.014], p=.041) were found to be significant predictors of PPD. The prevalence rate of the current sample was noticeably higher than the national prevalence rate of PPD (27%, 15%). This higher prevalence rate may be attributed to our finding that the risk of repeat partner violence is a significant predictor of PPD due to previous experience of violence.