Are commonly used self-report inventories suitable for screening postpartum depression and anxiety disorders?

OBJECTIVE The utility of several self-report symptom inventories were examined for detecting postpartum depression (MDD) and anxiety disorders (AD). METHOD Fifty women (3 or 6 months postpartum), at heightened risk for MDD, completed several depression and anxiety symptom checklists. Psychiatric diagnoses were obtained via SCID interview. RESULTS Rates of MDD (n=9) and AD (n=9) were equivalent in this sample, with minimal diagnostic overlap. While all the self-report depression inventories screened accurately for MDD, none discriminated AD sensitively and reliably. CONCLUSION The frequent occurrence of AD emphasizes the need to identify appropriate screening instruments for postpartum anxiety disorders.