Public Health Agency of Canada, 785 Carling Avenue K1S 5H4, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Indigenous Services Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
J Affect Disord. 2020 Jun 1;270:69-74. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2020.03.054. Epub 2020 Mar 27.
The prevalence of thoughts of self-harm during the postpartum period is not well documented in Canada. To estimate the prevalence of thoughts of self-harm among postpartum women in Canada, this study explored prevalence by socio-demographic characteristics and examined the associations between thoughts of self-harm and aspects of maternal mental health.
This study used data from the 2018/2019 Survey on Maternal Health which surveyed women living in the 10 provinces anywhere between 6-13 months postpartum. Participants were asked to report experiencing thoughts of self-harm, rate their mental health, and participate in the abbreviated Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) scale. Adjusted logistic regression analyses were performed to examine associations.
Of the 6,558 respondents who agreed to share their data, 10.4% reported thoughts of self-harm since the birth of their child. Of these women, 37.0% reported low mental health, 54.2% had moderate levels of symptoms of postpartum depression (PPD) and 37.1% had symptoms of GAD. Women who experienced low mental health, moderate levels of symptoms of PPD and/or GAD were more likely to report thoughts of self-harm.
As thoughts of self-harm and aspects of mental health are self-reported, there is the potential for social desirability bias and underreporting. The cross-sectional survey design did not allow the reporting of thoughts of self-harm at different time points.
The high proportion of postpartum women in Canada reporting thoughts of self-harm and strong associations with aspects of maternal mental health highlight the need for effective supports during postpartum.
在加拿大，产后期间出现自残念头的患病率尚未得到充分记录。为了估计加拿大产后妇女出现自残念头的患病率，本研究通过社会人口统计学特征来探讨患病率，并研究自残念头与产妇心理健康的各个方面之间的关联。
本研究使用了 2018/2019 年母婴健康调查的数据，该调查对 10 个省份中任何地方在产后 6-13 个月的女性进行了调查。参与者被要求报告是否出现过自残念头、评估自己的心理健康状况，并参与简短的爱丁堡产后抑郁量表和广泛性焦虑症量表的测试。采用调整后的逻辑回归分析来检验关联。
在同意分享数据的 6558 名受访者中，有 10.4%的人报告自孩子出生以来有过自残念头。在这些女性中，37.0%的人心理健康水平较低，54.2%的人出现中度产后抑郁症状，37.1%的人出现广泛性焦虑症状。经历心理健康水平较低、中度产后抑郁症状和/或广泛性焦虑症状的女性更有可能报告出现自残念头。
由于自残念头和心理健康状况都是自我报告的，因此存在社会期望偏差和漏报的可能性。横断面调查设计不允许报告不同时间点的自残念头。
加拿大有相当大比例的产后女性报告出现自残念头，并且与产妇心理健康的各个方面存在强烈关联，这突显了在产后期间需要提供有效的支持。
