Factor Structure of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale in a Sample of Postpartum Slovak Women.

Zuzana Škodová,Ľubica Bánovčinová,Marián Grendár,Eva Urbanová,Martina Bašková

doi:10.3390/ijerph18126298

Abstract

Background: Postpartum depression has a negative impact on quality of life. The aim of this study was to examine the factor structure and psychometric properties of the Slovak version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Methods: A paper and pencil version of the 10-item EPDS questionnaire was administered personally to 577 women at baseline during their stay in hospital on the second to fourth day postpartum (age, 30.6 ± 4.9 years; 73.5% vaginal births vs. 26.5% operative births; 59.4% primiparas). A total of 198 women participated in the online follow-up 6–8 weeks postpartum (questionnaire sent via e-mail). Results: The Slovak version of the EPDS had Cronbach’s coefficients of 0.84 and 0.88 at baseline (T1) and follow-up, respectively. The three-dimensional model of the scale offered good fit for both the baseline (χ2 (df = 28) = 1339.38, p < 0.001; CFI = 0.99, RMSEA = 0.02, and TLI = 0.99) and follow-up (χ2 (df = 45) = 908.06, p < 0.001, CFI = 0.93, RMSEA = 0.09, and TL = 0.90). A risk of major depression (EPDS score ≥ 13) was identified in 6.1% in T1 and 11.6% in the follow-up. Elevated levels of depression symptoms (EPDS score ≥ 10) were identified in 16.7% and 22.7% of the respondents at baseline and follow-up, respectively. Conclusions: The Slovak translation of the EPDS showed good consistency, convergent validity, and model characteristics. The routine use of EPDS can contribute to improving the quality of postnatal health care.

Highlights

Significant geographical and socio-demographical differences in the estimates of the prevalence of postpartum depression have been reported by several studies
The routine use of Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) can contribute to improving the quality of postnatal health care
The basic demographic and anamnestic characteristics of the respondents who participated at both T1 and T2 are provided in Table 1, along with the mean EPDS scores in the different groups of participants

Summary

Introduction

Significant geographical and socio-demographical differences in the estimates of the prevalence of postpartum depression have been reported by several studies. In a systematic review by Shorey et al [1], the average prevalence of depression was 17% among healthy mothers without a prior history of depression, with significant differences between geographical regions, with the Middle East having the highest prevalence (26%) and Europe having the lowest (8%). Differences in prevalence in high-income countries (9.5%) and low/middle-income countries (18.7%) were found in a systematic review by Woody et al [3]; the overall pooled prevalence in this study was 11.9% among women during the perinatal period. A few studies have estimated the postpartum depression occurrence in the Slovak Republic. A prevalence of 18% was reported in a small sample of Slovak postpartum women by Izakova [5]; 25% prevalence was reported by Banovcinova et al [6]

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