The DOI matches its Crossref record; 76 of the 76 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Prevalence of prenatal and postpartum depression in fathers: A comprehensive meta-analysis of observational surveys
Abstract
Background Increasing attention has been paid to maternal prenatal and postpartum depressive symptoms (depression thereafter), but little is known about the prevalence of paternal prenatal and postpartum depression. To fill this gap, the current study meta-analyzed the worldwide prevalence of prenatal and postpartum depression in fathers.Methods Studies that reported paternal depression occurring between the first trimester and the first postpartum year were identified by searching both international (PubMed, PsycINFO, Web of Science and EMBASE) and Chinese (WanFang and CNKI) databases between their inception date and July 1, 2018. A random-effects model was used to calculate pooled estimates and 95% confidence intervals.Results Forty-seven studies with 20,728 subjects were included in the meta-analysis. The prevalence of prenatal depression in fathers was 9.76% in all three trimesters, 13.59% in the first, 11.31% in the second and 10.12% in the third trimester. The prevalence of postpartum depression was 8.75% within a whole year, 8.98% within one-month, 7.82% between one- and three months, 9.23% between three months and six months and 8.40% between six months to twelve months after child-birth. The prevalence of paternal postpartum depression was moderated by year of publication, study area, age of fathers of ≥18 years, quality assessment score and mean age (all P<0.05).Conclusions This meta-analysis found that the prevalence of prenatal and postpartum depression in fathers was relatively common. Regular screening, effective prevention and appropriate treatment need to be implemented in this population.
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In the citing paper
“Following PB, about 17% of fathers develop postpartum depression (PPD) [19], compared to 8.75% prevalence typically reported after term birth (TB) [20].”
From Fathers at risk: Effects of threatened and actual preterm birth on the course of paternal peripartum depression and anxiety (2026) · cites this paper as [20]
In the citing paper
“However, prevalence of depression in our current sample was comparable with the average occurrence of depression in expectant fathers as shown by a systematic review (Mazza et al., 2022) and meta-analytic research (Rao et al., 2020).”
From Mindfulness, Self-compassion, and Psychological Wellbeing as Correlates of Paternal Bonding in Pregnancy. (2025) · cites this paper as Rao et al., 2020
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Factors Influencing Paternal Postpartum Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Wang, D., Li, Y.-L., Qiu, D., & Xiao, S.-Y. (2021) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2021.05.088 · Cited by 167
Smythe, K. L., Petersen, I., & Schartau, P. (2022) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.18969 · Cited by 147
Risk factors for postpartum depressive symptoms among fathers: A systematic review and meta‐analysis
Ansari, N. S., Shah, J. P., Dennis, C., & Shah, P. S. (2021) · Acta Obstetricia Et Gynecologica Scandinavica · doi:10.1111/aogs.14109 · Cited by 130
Fisher, S. D., Cobo, J., Figueiredo, B., Fletcher, R. J., Garfield, C. F., Hanley, J., Ramchandani, P. G., & Singley, D. B. (2021) · Archives of Women s Mental Health · doi:10.1007/s00737-021-01171-y · Cited by 96
Vigod, S. N., Frey, B. N., Clark, C. T., Grigoriadis, S., Barker, L. C., Brown, H. K., Charlebois, J., Dennis, C., Fairbrother, N., Green, S. M., et al. (2025) · The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/07067437241303031 · Cited by 91
Metadata
- Authors
- Rao, W.-W., Zhu, X.-M., Zong, Q.-Q., Zhang, Q., Hall, B. J., Ungvari, G. S., & Xiang, Y.-T.
- Affiliations
- University of Macau (MO)
- Capital Medical University (CN)
- The University of Western Australia (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Xiang, Yu-Tao
- Venue
- Journal of Affective Disorders
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-02
- Volume
- 263
- Pages
- 491-499
- ISSN
- 0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2981963114
- Cited by
- 253
- References
- 75
- Citations by year
- 2026: 42 · 2025: 45 · 2024: 45 · 2023: 55 · 2022: 30 · 2021: 32 · 2020: 4
- FWCI
- 2.72
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UWA Profiles and Research Repository (UWA) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- University of Macau (MYRG2016-00005-FHS, MYRG2019-00066-FHS)
- Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK20180213)
- National Key Research & Development Program of China (2016YFC1307200)
- Beijing Municipal Administration of Hospitals Clinical Medicine Development of Special Funding Support (ZYLX201607)
- Beijing Municipal Administration of Hospitals’ Ascent Plan (DFL20151801)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Social Sciences › Demography › Family Dynamics and Relationships
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Keywords
- paternal depression, antenatal depression, postpartum depression, fathers, depression prevalence, postpartum period, depression screening, depression prevention
- MeSH terms
- Child, Depression, Fathers, Female, Humans, Male, Pregnancy, Risk Factors, Prevalence, Depression, Postpartum, Postpartum Period
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