Fear and Anxiety related to Covid-19 pandemic may predispose to perinatal depression

Abstract

Purpose. The COVID-19 pandemic situation significantly affected the mental health of the general and clinical population including that of pregnant and puerperal women due to lack of access to healthcare, social isolation, sleep loss, feelings of fear and uncertainties. However, few studies investigated which COVID-19-related psychopathological determinants may predispose to perinatal depression. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 related anxiety and fear on perinatal depression. Methods. We retrospectively screened 184 perinatal outpatients afferent to Perinatal Mental Health outpatient service, during March 2020-March 2021, by using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Fear of COVID-19 (FCV-19-S) and the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale (CAS). Results. The mean EPDS score was 9.0 (SD=5.3), experiencing a clinically relevant perinatal depression in 45.7% of the sample. The mean FCV-19-S score was 15.0 (SD=6.2) and CAS was 1.7 (SD=2.8). Linear regression analyses demonstrated that FCV-19-S (F(1,68)=12.218, R2=0.152, p<0.001) and CAS scores (F(1,68)=10.278, R2=0.131, p=0.002) statistically significantly predicted EPDS total scores. A positive correlation was reported between FCV-19-S and EPDS (r=0.390, p<0.001) and between CAS and EPDS (r=0.362, p<0.001). Conclusion. COVID-19 pandemic with its subsequent isolation, quarantine and lockdown might determine increased levels of anxiety and fear, particularly among women in their perinatal period who may experience a deprivation of their normal sources of family and social support and, hence, experience psychological distress, even in those women without a previous psychiatric history. Further preventive and screening strategies should be implemented in order to early identify at-risk pregnant and puerperal women during the COVID-19 pandemic.