title: The relationship between economic conditions and postpartum depression in Taiwan: a nationwide population-based study.
abstract: Understanding mothers' economic conditions and postpartum depression (PPD) is important for determining how they will take care of themselves and their infants during the postnatal period, especially for low-income families. This study examined the relationship between economic conditions and PPD to elucidate the effect of economic contraction on PPD.
  
  
  
  Our population-based nationwide study used 2000-2013 the National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan. A total of 1240 newly diagnosed PPD patients were recruited. We used the database of the Directorate General of Budget, Accounting, and Statistics of Executive Yuan of Taiwan for national economic indicators. The correlation between economic indicators and PPD was examined.
  
  
  
  The PPD incidence was positively correlated with yearly unemployment rate, consumer price index, and gross domestic product. During the great recession of 2008-2009, PPD was positively correlated with inflation rate. Consumer price index had a positive correlation with PPD incidence per month when comparing PPD in 2010 with the economic indicators during the great recession.
  
  
  
  As this retrospective study evaluated macroeconomic indicators, it is unclear whether the macroeconomic indicators' effect on PPD totally reflects the effect of true personal economic status on PPD.
  
  
  
  There was a significant association between PPD and economic conditions. This study shows that mothers' familial environment plays an important role in the development of PPD. The impact of the worldwide economic downturn of the great recession on women is persistent. This useful finding may give health policy planners a hint of early discovering and dealing with PPD when worldwide economic downturn.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: doc30666@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Fung-Wei
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan; Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: arjalee@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Wen-Ying
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: dtemer14@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Yueh-Ping
authors.initials: YP
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Cardinal Tien Hospital, New Taipei City, Taiwan; Institute of Biomedical Engineering, College of Medicine and College of Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: jjyang0827@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jing-Jung
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Division of Genetics and endocrinology, Chang Gung Children's and Memorial Hospital, Taoyuan, Taiwan. Electronic address: vic102535@yahoo.com.tw.
authors.forename: Shu-Pin
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Food Science and Technology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Biotechnology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: lin.yen.tsen@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Kuan-Chen
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Department of Nursing, Taoyuan, Taiwan. Electronic address: kccheng@ntu.edu.tw.
authors.forename: Yan-Cen
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Graduate Institute of Biomedical Electronics and Bioinformatics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: skbaskba@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Te-Wei
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Shuang Ho Hospital, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Superintendent office, Lihuili Eastern Hospital, Ningbo 315040, Zhejiang province, China. Electronic address: Kru24@163.com.
authors.forename: Feng-Hsiang
authors.initials: FH
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.affiliation: Biobank Management Center of Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Pathology and Graduate Institute of Pathology and Parasitology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Life Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: hsurnai@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Ren-Jun
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.affiliation: Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Taoyuan General Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Taoyuan, Taiwan. Electronic address: mento1218@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jui-Ming
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D011203:Poverty / Q000523:psychology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology; D014478:Unemployment / Q000523:psychology; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Economic condition; National Health Insurance Research Database; Postpartum depression