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Cited by 75Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and PostpartumMaternal and Neonatal HealthcareMaternal and Perinatal Health Interventions

Validating the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale as a screening tool for postpartum depression in Kathmandu, Nepal

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Bhusal, Babu Ram, Bhandari, Nisha, Chapagai, Manisha, Gavidia, Tania·2016·International Journal of Mental Health Systems
DOI 10.1186/s13033-016-0102-6PMC PMC5073833
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is considered well accepted screening tool for postpartum depression (PPD). The objective of the study was to validate the EPDS as a screening tool for postpartum depression in Kathmandu, Nepal. METHODS: A hospital based cross sectional study using EPDS was conducted among 346 mothers between 4 and 14 weeks of postpartum period. All the participants were examined by psychiatrist for possible clinical PPD diagnosis using International Classification of Disease tenth revision (ICD-10). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were calculated for validation of EPDS. The best cut off point for Nepalese version of EPDS was identified and area of the receiver operating characteristics curve was calculated. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of PPD was 17.1 %.The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value of the Nepalese version EPDS was found to be 92, 95.6, 77 and 99.3 % respectively. The best cut-off point of EPDS for screening of PPD was found to be 12/13 and the area of the curve was 0.98 (95 % CI 0.970-0.994, p = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of PPD is not that far from the previous studies of Nepal. Nepali version of EPDS was acceptable and the study demonstrates good validity, thus EPDS can be used as valid screening tool for PPD for early detection, prompt treatment and to prevent possible consequences.

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  • Validated, frequently used questionnaires such as the EPDS or HADS seemed to perform similarly to other less frequently used but still validated screens.

    “Validated, frequently used questionnaires, such as the EPDS (Bhusal et al., 2016; which has high sensitivity and is specifically designed to detect depression in the postnatal period (Ji et al., 2011)) or the HADS screen for depression and anxiety (Bjelland et al., 2002), seemed to perform similarly other less frequently used, but still validated screens.”

    From The mental health impact of perinatal loss: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2022) · cites this paper as Bhusal et al., 2016

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Authors
Bhusal, B. R., Bhandari, N., Chapagai, M., & Gavidia, T.
Affiliations
  • Government of Nepal (NP)
  • Tribhuvan University (NP)
  • Maharajgunj Medical Campus (NP)
  • Curtin University (AU)
Corresponding author
Bhusal, Babu Ram
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Mental Health Systems
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2016-10-21
Volume
10
Issue
1
Pages
71-71
ISSN
1752-4458 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/s13033-016-0102-6
PMC
PMC5073833
OpenAlex
W2534425026
Cited by
75
References
3
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 18 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 5
FWCI
2.64
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • International Journal of Mental Health Systems (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eSpace (Curtin University) (submittedVersion)
Funders
Tribhuvan University
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Obstetrics and Gynecology › Maternal and Perinatal Health Interventions
Keywords
Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, postpartum depression, screening tool validation, cut-off values, diagnostic accuracy, Kathmandu

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