title: Effect of dysfunctional attitudes and postpartum state on vulnerability to depressed mood.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Postpartum depression (PPD) is the most common complication of childbearing with a 13% prevalence. Vulnerability to depressed mood has an important role in the onset of major depressive episodes (MDE), but has not been investigated in postpartum. The aim is to assess whether day-5 postpartum blues and severity of dysfunctional attitudes predicts vulnerability to depressed mood.
  
  
  METHODS
  About 45 healthy women were recruited: group 1 (n=12) was day-5 postpartum during the typical peak of postpartum blues. Group 2 (n=11) was within 18 months postpartum and reported a vulnerability to cry (and had elevated dysfunctional attitudes but no MDE). Group 3 (n=11) was within 18 months postpartum and no vulnerability to cry. Group 4 (n=11) was not recently postpartum. Vulnerability to depressed mood was measured by the change in the visual analog scale from the sad mood induction procedure (MIP).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Univariate analysis of covariance demonstrated that day-5 postpartum blues and level of dysfunctional attitudes were highly predictive of change in sad mood (postpartum blues: F(1,41)=12.9, p<0.005, dysfunctional attitudes scale score: F(1,41)=11.49, p<0.005).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although the effects were robust, sample sizes were 11-12 within each group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Two factors (day-5 postpartum and severity of dysfunctional attitudes) predicted vulnerability to sad mood. Since the severity of postpartum blues predicts PPD, MIP on day-5 postpartum represents a quantitative measure that can be applied to screen novel, early interventions for preventing PPD. Interventions to prevent PPD through increasing resilience against mood induction should target postpartum women with greater severity of dysfunctional attitudes.
authors.affiliation: CAMH Research Imaging Centre and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Canada.
authors.forename: Yekta
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dowlati
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Canada.
authors.forename: Zindel V
authors.initials: ZV
authors.lastname: Segal
authors.affiliation: CAMH Research Imaging Centre and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Canada.
authors.forename: Arun V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Ravindran
authors.affiliation: Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
authors.forename: Meir
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Steiner
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Canada; Toronto General Research Institute, University Health Network, Toronto, Canada.
authors.forename: Donna E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: CAMH Research Imaging Centre and Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada; Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Canada. Electronic address: jeff.meyer@camhpet.ca.
authors.forename: Jeffrey H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Meyer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D001290:Attitude; D003863:Depression; D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D049590:Postpartum Period
keywords: Dysfunctional attitudes; Mood induction; Postpartum blues; Postpartum depression