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Implications for practice and research
■ Women are vulnerable to depression and anxiety during pregnancy and post partum, yet only one in four seek help.
■ Clinical management of mothers experiencing depression should assess for substance abuse, unmet needs and psychiatric co-morbidities.
■ Population-based studies can determine prevalence but cause and effect is best shown through intervention-based randomised controlled trials.
■ Depressed women are less likely to respond to surveys, so using face-to-face and telephone interviews can enhance response rates and completion.
Context
Pregnancy can trigger a first depressive episode or recurrence of depression for some women. Depressive symptoms of pregnant and post partum women do not differ much from those of depressed …
Footnotes
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Competing interests None.