Postpartum Depression (PPD) is an important social and health problem for women and their families with an incidence of at least 13%. In comparing the diagnosis, timing, and symptom patterns of PPD and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), there are distinct differences that may partially explain why PPD is under-diagnosed and under-treated. The purpose of this manuscript is to compare and critique the most common instruments used to assess PPD. The Postpartum Depression Screening Scale developed by C.T. Beck and Gable is recommended for use by mental health providers.

Violence against women (VAW) in Turkey is concerning, and to develop and implement effective prevention strategies for addressing it, careful consideration must be given to the factors that influence it. In this review, we synthesized the body of literature on VAW in Turkey according to a social ecological framework, which is a theoretical model considering the complex interplay between individual, relationship, community, and societal factors. Consistent with this framework, we obtained research articles and commentaries in Turkish and English from a variety of national and international databases and websites regarding risk factors, cultural practices violating women's rights, and trends and current practices, including prevention efforts. Our review revealed that factors influencing VAW are marriage at young age, lower education level, alcohol abuse, and childhood trauma or abuse history for individual level; having multiple partners, low relationship satisfaction, and forced marriage for relationship level; poverty, lack of social support, and lack of employment opportunities for community level; cultural acceptance of men's superiority and dominance over women, acceptance of violence, cultural practices, and weak legal sanctions for societal level. Additionally, we reviewed multilevel prevention strategies in the extant literature on effective prevention and intervention efforts according to social ecological framework and proposed research, practice, and policy implications derived from this framework.

Depression is the mental health disorder most commonly seen in the primary health care setting. Estimates of the prevalence of people who are depressed but are seeking treatment for physical disorders in the primary care setting range from 12% to 55% of total patients. We conducted a study to determine the number of women with high depressive symptoms who were seeking treatment for physical disorders and compared this group with women with no depressive symptoms who were also seeking physical health care. The women with high depressive symptoms (n = 122) and the women with no depressive symptoms (n = 115) were similar in age, economic status, occupation status, and lifestyle. The depressed women reported significantly more physical complaints, increased disability, increased functional limitations, and increased use of health care services than did the nondepressed women. They disclosed a variety of physical complaints in all organ systems, had had more life events, and had a diminished belief in their ability to control their environments. The results of this study support the view that large numbers of women with depression that is unrecognized present themselves to the health care system for physical complaints. Health care providers need to extend their view of women as whole beings, instead of as a somatic complaint.

The availability of sufficient zeitgebers is essential for entrainment of circadian rhythms. Bright light is an important human zeitgeber. However, social cues acting through the sleep-wake cycle may also be important in the entrainment of human rhythms. Current research suggests that humans receive inadequate and sporadic exposure to bright light. Social cues, although less powerful, may be an important form of entrainment for contemporary humans, and also serve to augment the effects of available bright light. Both light and social zeitgebers should be investigated for their roles in the genesis, prevention, and treatment of alterations in health.

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