Development and validation of the maternal blues scale through bonding attachments in predicting postpartum blues

@#Background: Postpartum blues in Indonesia has a high prevalence at 37% to 67%. Postpartum blues syndrome has been described as varying changes in the affective domain, such as feelings, behavior, or thoughts, that can be influenced by the roles and tasks of women, along with their social, cultural, and economic support. Instruments that measure maternal blues through bonding attachment behavior have never before been developed in Indonesia. Objective: This study aimed to develop a maternal blues scale through bonding attachments to predict postpartum blues. Method: The research design consisted of three stages: 1) phenomenology design and focus group discussion; 2) development and construction of the maternal blues scale, and 3) a cross-sectional study to measure validation of the scales. Respondents were postpartum mothers in the first week after birth. The sample comprised 501 participants. Sampling was done by consecutive sampling at the Public Health Center (PUSKESMAS) in the South Jakarta area. Data analysis used exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), correlation, and a diagnostic testing . Results: Item analysis produced 32 items consisting of 24 items regarding the mother’s role and duties as internal factors and eight factors involving social, cultural, and economic support as external factors. Both factors were valid and reliable in predicting postpartum blues with indicators (t loading factors ≥ 1.96, standardized loading factor (SLF) ≥.50, internal factors: construct reliability (CR) ≥ .70 and extraction variants (VE) ≥ .50 and external factors: CR ≥ .74 to .83 VE ≥ .50 to .63). The relationship with Kennerley’s maternity blues as a gold standard was significant. Internal factors had a score of 53, with a sensitivity of 60.2%. The external factors score was 19, with a sensitivity of 77.3%. Conclusion: The new scale for postpartum blues prediction developed displayed internal consistency and validity of each indicator (internal and external factors) that was good (CR ≥ .70; VE ≥ .50). This scale provides a feasible tool to predict postpartum blues.

Prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital in Dasmariñas, Cavite from April to May 2013

GENERAL OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine the prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital in Dasmariñas, Cavite from April to May 2013. Specifically, it aims to determine the proportion of mothers experiencing postpartum depression on the basis of the following socio-demographic factors: age, marital status, employment status, manner of delivery, parity, age of gestation upon delivery, gender of the newborn and breastfeeding status. METHODOLOGY: A total of 115 postpartum patients were included in this descriptive study. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) for screening postpartum women was used in this study. It was translated in Filipino language, back translated and validated prior to its use on the women. A score of at least 10 points indicates possible postpartum depression (PPD). A score of at least 1 point in question #10 indicates suicidal ideation. RESULTS: Out of 115 patients, 89 had an EPDS score below 10 points corresponding to 77.39% of the total population studied, while 26 participants had a score of at least 10 points corresponding to 22.61%. There were 9 respondents who scored at least 1 point in ques­tion #10 pertaining to 7.83% of the population. CONCLUSION: Postpartum depression is a universal dilemma. In this study, the prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital in Dasmariñas, Cavite from April to May 2013 is 22.61%. Since postpartum depression is a common condition with serious consequences, screening must be done with a multidisciplinary approach from both the obstetricians and psychiatrists.

Prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital / Philippine Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology

GENERAL OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital.METHODS: A total of 115 postpartum patients were included in the study. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) which was developed in 1987 for screening postpartum women was used in this study. It was translated in Filipino language and has been validated. A score of at least 10 points indicates possible postpartum depression. A score of at least 1 point in question it 10 indicates suicidal ideation.RESULTS: Out of 115 patients, 89 had an EPDS score below 10 points corresponding to 77.39% of the total population studied, while 26 participants had a score of at least 10 points corresponding to 22.61%. There were 9 respondents who scored at least 1 point in ques­tion #10 pertaining to 7.83% of the population.CONCLUSION: Postpartum depression is a universal dilemma. In this study, the prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers who delivered in a tertiary hospital in Dasmariñas, Cavite from April to May 2013 is 22.61%. Since postpartum depression is a common condition with serious consequences, screening must be done with a multidisciplinary approach from both the obstetricians and psychiatrists.

The Effects of Music on the Frontal EEG Asymmetry of the Mothers with Postpartum Blues

OBJECTIVES: Postpartum blues is known to be a major risk factor for postpartum depression and can be associated with the problems of language skills, behaviors or learning skills of their children. Therefore, it is very important for clinicians to evaluate precisely and control postpartum blues. Recent studies have found that music has an effect on depressive mood and the frontal EEG asymmetry of the patients with depression. The purpose of this study was to find out the effects of music on the frontal EEG asymmetry of the mothers with postpartum blues. METHOD: Among one hundred and seventy mothers assessed with Korean version of the Edinburg Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), nine mothers with postpartum blues (EPDS > or = 10) as postpartum blues group and nine non-depressive mothers (EPDS < 10) as non-depressive mother group were included. Ten non-labored, non-depressive women were also included as a normal control group. The subjects were evaluated with the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI)-X1, the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the Depression Adjective Checklist-Korean version (K-DACL) and EEG twice before and after the music sesssion with the length of twenty minutes and thirty two seconds. The statistical analyses were done for A1 score (log R - log L) which were computed from the alpha powers at F3 and F4. RESULTS: No significant difference was noted in demographic data among all three groups. The postpartum blues group had higher scores in the STAI-X1, the VAS and the K-DACL compared to the other groups at baseline, and their A1 scores were lower than those of only normal controls. There was a statistically significant increase of A1 score only in the postpartum blues group after the music session. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that the mothers with postpartum blues may have a frontal EEG asymmetry which is possibly associated with their depressive mood, and the music session can affect the frontal asymmetry positively.

The Effects of Music Therapy on Postpartum Blues and Maternal Attachment of Puerperal Women

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of music therapy on postpartum blues and maternal attachment of puerperal women. METHODS: The research design was a nonequivalent control group non-synchronized design. The participants were puerperal women who agreed to participate in this study and through a convenience sampling, 60 puerperal women were recruited (30 in the experimental group, 30 in the control group). After measuring postpartum blues and maternal attachment, music therapy was provided to the experimental group over 40 min, once a day, and for 8 days. Then, postpartum blues and maternal attachment for the experimental and control group were measured again on the 8th day. The data were analyzed using the SPSS WIN 12.0 Program. RESULTS: The first hypothesis that "the degree of postpartum blues for the experimental group who participated in music therapy would be lower than that of the control group" was accepted (t=4.350, p<.001). The second hypothesis that "the degree of maternal attachment of the experimental group who participated in music therapy would be higher than that of the control group" was accepted (t=4.828, p<.001). CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that music therapy has positive influences on decreasing postpartum blues and increasing maternal attachment of puerperal women.