Postpartum Mental Health Status & Role Transition to Mother in Primigravid Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective : To assess the incidence of postpartum depression, maternal confidence about parenting and maternal–infant bonding characteristics in first-time mothers.Background : First-time mothers are usually unprepared for the transition into motherhood and may find it difficult to cope-up with this challenge leading to parenting stress, maternal–infant bonding disorders, and mental health problems.Methods : This cross-sectional study was conducted in a tertiary centre in South India, on 151 primigravid mothers who delivered a live-born healthy infant after 37 weeks' gestation. Assessment was done using Patient Health Questionnaire scale, Tamil version of the Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire and Maternal Confidence Questionnaire on the 2nd or 3rd postpartum day.Results : Incidence of postpartum depression was found to be 18.5%, with 6% having features of severe depression. All mothers had good perceived maternal confidence. Nearly one-third had one or more of the maternal–infant bonding disorders. Those who had a vaginal delivery were associated with bonding disorders (OR = 10.3; 95% CI 2.13–47.21) whereas moderate to severe postpartum depression was not associated with it on multivariate analysis.Conclusion : First-time mothers were found to have good confidence in the transition to motherhood. However, the high incidence of maternal–infant bonding difficulty, especially in those with moderate to severe depression, suggests the need for initiating systematic and routine screening for postpartum mental health problems.