In countries where screening tool for depression is not applied routinely in obstetrics settings, clinicians should be aware of risk factors, frequency and level of depressive symptoms during pregnancy and postpartum.

BackgroundPerinatal depression encompasses major and minor depressive episodes that occur either during pregnancy or within the first 12 months following delivery.ObjectiveTo screen 213 women for depression symptoms during pregnancy and postpartum at the Clinic for Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinical Center of Serbia and in the Primary Health Center “Zvezdara”.MethodsTwo thousand thirteen women, without psychiatric history, were screened for depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Questionnaire that covered key demographic and obstetric information and EPDS, were administered at the third trimester of pregnancy, and 8 weeks postpartum. Women were identified as at high risk for depression if scores were above a cut-off score of twelve.ResultsTwenty one percent of the sample was screened as depression positive during pregnancy. Subsequently, efforts were made to follow-up 195 women with a postnatal EPDS and ten percent were screened positive during postpartum. Risk factors low education level, dissatisfaction with financial situation, high risk pregnancy and depression during pregnancy. Logistic regression with backwards elimination showed that women who had high risk pregnancy have threefold increased risk for postpartum depression; antenatal depressive symptoms tenfold increased risk for postpartum depression.ConclusionClinicians should be aware of the frequency and level of depressive symptoms during pregnancy, especially in countries where screening tool for depression is not applied routinely in obstetrics settings. Therefore, it is very important to identify women at high risk. Be aware that depression is one of the risk factors that complicate pregnancy.