The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale: Validation for an Australian Sample
Abstract
One hundred and three post-partum women completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and were interviewed using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule. A cut-off score of 12.5 on the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale identified all nine women who reached criteria for major depression. At this threshold the sensitivity (the percentage of true “cases’ identified) of the EPDS was 100%, its specificity (the percentage of true “non-cases’ identified as such) 95.7% and its positive predictive value (the percentage of all those tested as positive who were correctly identified as such) 69.2%. Although this study supported the validity of the EPDS, a replication of this study on a larger sample is suggested.
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The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) has adequate sensitivity and specificity to identify depressive symptoms using a research cut-off >12.
“It is routinely used in antenatal and perinatal care in Australia and has adequate sensitivity and specificity to identify depressive symptoms using a research cut-off > 12 [42].”
From Effect of maternal depression on infant-directed speech to prelinguistic infants: Implications for language development (2020) · cites this paper as [42]
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References 16 · Cited by 378
- Authors
- Boyce, P., Stubbs, J., & Todd, A.
- Affiliations
- The University of Sydney (AU)
- Nepean Hospital (AU)
- Venue
- Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 1993-09
- Volume
- 27
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 472-476
- ISSN
- 0004-8674 (ISSN-L)
- 1440-1614
- OpenAlex
- W1974112877
- Cited by
- 378
- References
- 16
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 11 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 12 · 2012: 18
- FWCI
- 3.68
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- University of Pittsburgh
- 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
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, postpartum depression, major depressive disorder, screening tool validation, diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity and specificity, postpartum women, Australian women
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Female, Humans, New South Wales, Personality Inventory, Psychometrics, Puerperal Disorders, Reproducibility of Results
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