3rd Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
J Perinat Med. 2021 Mar 17;49(6):656-663. doi: 10.1515/jpm-2020-0473. Print 2021 Jul 27.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the public health measures introduced to control it, on mental health, is largely unknown. Research conducted during past epidemics found that pregnant women are more vulnerable psychologically. The aim of this study was to investigate antenatal depressive and anxiety symptoms during this pandemic in Greece.
All women receiving routine antenatal care, during a three-month period, starting one week after the total lockdown in Greece, in a University department, were asked to fill in two questionnaires, the Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI).
Overall, 505 women (93.3% of the eligible population) agreed to participate. The prevalence of antenatal depression (EPDS score≥13) in the population of the study was 13.5%. Unplanned pregnancy (OR: 2.447; 95% CI: 1.235-4.846), smoking (OR: 2.268; 95% CI: 1.166-4.411) and antenatal anxiety (OR: 5.074; 95% CI: 2.898-8.883) increased the risk of antenatal depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. State (current)-anxiety affected 34.1% of the participants, whereas Trait (lifetime)-anxiety affected 15.8%. The State-anxiety score (median) was significantly higher than the Trait-anxiety (median) (41 vs. 36; p<0.001), revealing an increase in the levels of anxiety in the pandemic, while there was also a positive linear correlation between the two scales (rho=0.592; p<0.001).
The unprecedented situation of the COVID-19 pandemic has increased anxiety, but not depression levels of pregnant women in Greece. Population level interventions to address adverse effects on anxiety status in the initial phases of similar situations may be helpful in the future.
COVID-19 大流行及其为控制疫情而采取的公共卫生措施对心理健康的影响在很大程度上尚不清楚。过去的流行病研究发现，孕妇在心理上更容易受到影响。本研究旨在调查 COVID-19 大流行期间希腊的孕妇产前抑郁和焦虑症状。
在希腊全面封锁后的一周开始，在大学妇产科的三个月内，所有接受常规产前护理的妇女都被要求填写两份问卷，爱丁堡产后抑郁量表（EPDS）和状态-特质焦虑量表（STAI）。
共有 505 名（合格人群的 93.3%）妇女同意参与。研究人群中产前抑郁（EPDS 评分≥13）的患病率为 13.5%。意外怀孕（OR：2.447；95%CI：1.235-4.846）、吸烟（OR：2.268；95%CI：1.166-4.411）和产前焦虑（OR：5.074；95%CI：2.898-8.883）增加了 COVID-19 大流行期间产前抑郁的风险。状态（当前）焦虑影响了 34.1%的参与者，而特质（终生）焦虑影响了 15.8%。状态焦虑评分（中位数）明显高于特质焦虑评分（中位数）（41 对 36；p<0.001），表明大流行期间焦虑水平有所上升，同时两个量表之间存在正线性相关（rho=0.592；p<0.001）。
COVID-19 大流行的前所未有的情况增加了希腊孕妇的焦虑水平，但没有增加抑郁水平。在类似情况的初始阶段，针对焦虑状况的不利影响进行人群水平的干预措施可能在未来有所帮助。
