Abstract summary 

Depression is the most common mental health problem that affects women during pregnancy and after child-birth. Postpartum depression, in particular, has both short and long-term effects on the lives of mothers and children. Women's health is a current global concern, but postpartum depression is a neglected issue in the maternal continuum of care and is rarely addressed. Therefore, this study aimed to assess postpartum depression and associated factors in Gondar city, northwest Ethiopia.A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from August 1st to 30th, 2021 in Gondar city. A cluster sampling technique was employed to select 794 postpartum women. Data were entered by EPI DATA version 4.6 and exported to SPSS version 25 for further analysis. The multivariable logistic regression analysis was carried out to identify factors associated with postpartum depression. The adjusted odds ratio with its 95% confidence interval at a p-value of ≤ 0.05 was used to declare the level of significance.A total of 794 women were included in the analysis, giving a response rate of 98.5%. The prevalence of postpartum depression was 17.25% (95% CI: 14.5, 20.2). Younger maternal age (AOR = 2.72, 95% CI: 1.23, 5.85), low average monthly income (AOR = 2.71, 95% CI: 1.24, 5.91), low decision-making power (AOR = 2.04, 95%CI: 1.31, 3.18), low husband/partner involvement in MNCH care service (AOR = 2.34, 95%CI: 1.44, 3.81), unplanned pregnancy (AOR = 3.16 95% CI: 1.77, 5.62), and experience of intimate partner violence (AOR = 3.13; 95% CI: 1.96, 4.99) were significantly associated with increased odds of postpartum depression.In this study, nearly 1/5th of the study participants had postpartum depression. Thus, it is important to integrate maternal mental health services with the existing maternal health care services. It is also crucial to advocate the need for husband's involvement in MNCH care services and ensure women's decision-making power in the household. Moreover, community-based sexual and reproductive health education would be better to reduce risk factors of postpartum depression.

Authors & Co-authors:  Kebede Azmeraw Ambachew AA Gessesse Dereje Nibret DN Aklil Mastewal Belayneh MB Temesgan Wubedle Zelalem WZ Abegaz Marta Yimam MY Anteneh Tazeb Alemu TA Tibebu Nebiyu Solomon NS Alemu Haymanot Nigatu HN Haile Tsion Tadesse TT Seyoum Asmra Tesfahun AT Tiguh Agumas Eskezia AE Yismaw Ayenew Engida AE Mihret Muhabaw Shumye MS Nenko Goshu G Wondie Kindu Yinges KY Taye Birhan Tsegaw BT Tsega Nuhamin Tesfa NT

Study Outcome 

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