OBJECTIVES: Postpartum Depression (PPD) is a prevalent, under-diagnosed mental health condition posing significant risks for mothers and their newborns. The symptoms of PPD can limit the functions of mothers and thereby affect the care of newborns. This study evaluated the humanistic burden of PPD among women in the United States.

METHODS: This retrospective cross-sectional study analyzed data from 2016-2019 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS). The analytic cohort included women aged 18-50 years with a childbirth event (identified using diagnosis of either pregnancy, delivery, or encounter of postpartum examination) and no evidence of mental health conditions. Women with PPD were identified using diagnosis and drug codes associated with depression and other mood disorders. The humanistic burden was examined using Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) scores from Short-Form 12 Health Survey Version 2 (SF12-v2). Multivariable linear regression was utilized to assess the humanistic burden of PPD after adjusting for baseline covariates using Inverse Probability of Treatment Weighting (IPTW).

RESULTS: Of the 1,873 women (representing 4.8 million patients annually) identified with childbirth event and no prior mental disorder, 198 (11%), representing 550,268 patients annually, had evidence of PPD. The majority of the women with PPD were non-Hispanic whites (71%), married (62%), without bachelor’s degree (52%), with high income (38%), and non-smokers (82%). The average MCS and PCS scores for women with PPD vs. without PPD were 44.4 vs. 52.5 and 52.5 vs. 52.3, respectively. The IPTW adjusted regression indicated that, on average, women with PPD had approximately 8 points (β: -7.99; 95% confidence interval: [-10.26, -5.71]) lower MCS scores as compared to women without PPD.

CONCLUSIONS: Women with PPD experience poor quality of life, primarily driven by their mental health state. Effective treatment approaches for PPD can improve the quality of life of mothers and care provided to newborns.