Counselling of postnatal depression: a controlled study on a population based Swedish sample

J Affect Disord. 1996 Jul 29;39(3):209-16. doi: 10.1016/0165-0327(96)00034-1.

Abstract

In a two-stage screening procedure using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 8 and 12 weeks postpartum and the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) and DSM-III-R at about 13 weeks postpartum, 41 women identified as depressed were randomly allocated to a study and a control group. The women in the study group received 6 weekly, counselling visits by the Child Health Clinic nurse and the control group received routine primary care. Twelve (80%) of 15 women with major depression in the study group were fully recovered after the intervention compared to 4 (25%) of 16 in the control group. Counselling by health nurses is helpful in managing postnatal depression and seems to work well within the Swedish Primary Health Care system.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Comparative Study
  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Chi-Square Distribution
  • Counseling*
  • Depression, Postpartum / diagnosis
  • Depression, Postpartum / therapy*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Pregnancy
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
  • Statistics, Nonparametric