The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at 3, 9, 18 Months after Birth

Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS; Cox et al., 1987) is a 10-item self-report questionnaire for the screening of postnatal depression (PND). It is well known in the clinical field and research and considered adequate to assess postnatal depressive symptomatology (PPDS). While its use is diffused during the first months after birth, rarely EPDS is administered in more distant periods. This work represents a prosecution of a pilot study about administration of EPDS in periods beyond 3 months, to analyze whether 3 months EPDS score might be related to 9 months and 18 months EPDS score. Results from the pilot study on a sample of 53 women showed that percentage of women with PPDS was (EPDS Italian version, Benvenuti et al., 1999; cut-off score 8/9): 37.7% at 3 months, 35.8% at 9 months and 24.5% at 18 months. Concerning the beginning of PPDS, 3 months was the period in which PPDS appeared more frequently, although PPDS was found to begin at 9 and 18 months too. With regards to the duration of PPDS, types of duration, either short or extended, were equally distributed among women with PPDS. Analyses on EPDS raw scores showed that values tended to be similar across the three follow-up and regression analysis put in evidence that 18 months EPDS score was associated to previous scores and particularly to 9 months score. This work will analyse EPDS scores at 3, 9, 18 months on a sample of 167 women and will confirm or undermine the above-mentioned results.