The quality of a woman's relationship with her partner is associated with an increased risk of developing anxiety and depression in the postpartum.

To assess the prevalence of post-partum depression (PPD) and correlation between anxiety and depression in postpartum and the marital relationship in a sample of couples recruited at the Gynaecology Ward, “Maggiore della Carità” Hospital, Novara.

Evaluation of marital relationship functioning with regards to PDD onset.

This longitudinal study involved 44 couples recruited from February 2012 to March 2012. Single women, women suffering from severe chronic illnesses, drug addiction or alcoholism and with a previous diagnosis of psychiatric disorders were excluded. Mothers-to-be were assessed for depression and anxiety, during pregnancy and after delivery with the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) and the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). Both parents were assessed with the Relationship Satisfaction Scale (RSS); Relationship Assessment Scale (RAS); Marital Adjustment Test (MAT).

The prevalence of PDD was 18% according to the EPDS and 10.5% according to the BDI-II. No gender differences emerged as far as the partner relationship is concerned. The Chi-square analysis revealed a statistically significant inverse correlation between the development of PDD assessed with EPDS after delivery and RSS score (p=0.039) and RAS (p=0.05). A statistically significant inverse correlation emerged between BDI-II and RAS (p=0.005), and BDD and MAT (p=0.006).

The prevalence of PDD was consistent with the literature. Satisfaction with the marital relationship and the functioning of parental relationship correlates with PDD onset. Clinical implications are discussed.