Mental health status in pregnancy among native and non‐native Swedish‐speaking women: a Bidens study

Abstract

Objectives. To describe mental health status in native and non‐native Swedish‐speaking pregnant women and explore risk factors of depression and posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms. Design and setting. A cross‐sectional questionnaire study was conducted at midwife‐based antenatal clinics in Southern Sweden. Sample. A non‐selected group of women in mid‐pregnancy. Methods. Participants completed a questionnaire covering background characteristics, social support, life events, mental health variables and the short Edinburgh Depression Scale. Main outcome measures. Depressive symptoms during the past week and PTS symptoms during the past year. Results. Out of 1003 women, 21.4% reported another language than Swedish as their mother tongue and were defined as non‐native. These women were more likely to be younger, have fewer years of education, potential financial problems, and lack of social support. More non‐native speakers self‐reported depressive, PTS, anxiety and, psychosomatic symptoms, and fewer had had consultations with a psychiatrist or psychologist. Of all women, 13.8% had depressive symptoms defined by Edinburgh Depression Scale 7 or above. Non‐native status was associated with statistically increased risks of depressive symptoms and having ≥1 PTS symptom compared with native‐speaking women. Multivariate modeling including all selected factors resulted in adjusted odds ratios for depressive symptoms of 1.75 (95% confidence interval: 1.11–2.76) and of 1.56 (95% confidence interval: 1.10–2.34) for PTS symptoms in non‐native Swedish speakers. Conclusion. Non‐native Swedish‐speaking women had a more unfavorable mental health status than native speakers. In spite of this, non‐native speaking women had sought less mental health care.

Emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and the association with symptoms of depression and posttraumatic stress in a multi-ethnic pregnant population in southern Sweden

“…found that an increased risk for depressive symptoms in early pregnancy was associated with lack of social support, stressful life events, and being an immigrant [11]. A recent study of approximately one thousand women at mid-term pregnancy identified a higher risk of depressive and posttraumatic stress symptoms in those having another mother tongue than Swedish [12]. The results could not be explained by socioeconomic differences.…”

“…Women indicating "no" or "rarely" and missing values of the three items were coded No. This is a slightly more restrictive coding than in our previous study in which we also categorized women who responded "rarely" to one of the three questions as suffering from symptoms of PTS [12].…”

“…Another limitation is the use of a non-validated set of questions to measure PTS symptoms. However, several previous studies have been published using the exact three questions and coding we have used [12,23].…”

“…In addition, research indicates that being an immigrant is associated with an increased risk for mental health problems [11][12][13]. In a population-based study in Sweden, Rubertsson et al.…”

Childhood violence and mental health among indigenous Sami and non-Sami populations in Norway: a SAMINOR 2 questionnaire study

“…The responses “Yes, but rarely” or “Not at all” were defined as “No symptoms”. These 3 items measuring symptoms of PTS have previously been used in a study on mental health in Sweden [41]. …”