title: Association between antenatal depression and low birthweight in a developing country.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There is a high prevalence of depression in south Asian women. We aimed to examine the association between antenatal depression and low birthweight (LBW) in infants in a rural community in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 143 physically healthy mothers with ICD-10 depression in the third trimester of pregnancy and 147 non-depressed mothers of similar gestation were followed from birth. Infant weight was measured and information collected on socioeconomic status, maternal body-mass index and sociodemographic factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Infants of depressed mothers had lower birthweight (mean 2910 g) than infants of non-depressed mothers (mean 3022 g). The relative risk for LBW (< or =2500 g) in infants of depressed mothers was 1.9 (95% CI 1.3-2.9). The association remained significant after adjustment for confounders by multivariate analyses.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Low birthweight is a major public health problem in developing countries. Maternal depression during pregnancy predicts LBW. Interventions aimed at maternal depression may help improve infant outcomes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychological Medicine, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rahman
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bunn
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lovel
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Creed
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D010500:Perinatology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications