Peripartum length of stay for women with depressive symptoms during pregnancy.
BACKGROUND
Approximately 1 in 10 women suffers from depression during pregnancy. Little is known about whether antepartum depression affects a mother's length of stay at delivery. We aimed to compare peripartum length of stay in women with and without depressive symptoms during pregnancy.


METHODS
This study involved secondary data analysis of a larger study exploring antepartum depression. Each subject completed the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). We used bivariate analyses to compare patient characteristics of women with and without an elevated CES-D, and we used a multivariate Poisson regression to evaluate predictors of length of stay.


RESULTS
The study sample included 867 pregnant women. Overall, 18% of study subjects scored >or=16 on the CES-D. In bivariate analyses, a longer stay was associated with an elevated CES-D and minority race, antepartum complications, cesarean delivery, prematurity, multiple gestation, and neonatal length of stay. In the final multivariate model adjusting for sociodemographic, antepartum, and obstetric factors, an elevated CES-D was associated with a significantly longer peripartum stay (0.26 days, CI 0.04-0.48).


CONCLUSIONS
Depressive symptoms during pregnancy predict an increase in peripartum length of stay.
Lancaster
Christie A
CA
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-5604, USA. chrlanca@umich.edu
Flynn
Heather A
HA
Johnson
Timothy R B
TR
Marcus
Sheila M
SM
Davis
Matthew M
MM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008824:Michigan / Q000453:epidemiology; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016012:Poisson Distribution; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D011295:Prenatal Care; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D016387:Women's Health; D055815:Young Adult