Factors Associated with Early Postpartum Maternity Blues and Depression Tendency among Japanese Mothers with Full-term Healthy Infants

Maternity blues and postpartum depression are common mental health problems during the early postpartum period. However, few studies have examined the factors associated with maternity blues and postpartum depression in healthy mothers with spontaneous births of healthy full-term infants. This study aimed to determine the demographic and obstetric factors, various feelings during pregnancy, and psychological factors by using the Maternity Blues Scale (MBS) and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression scale (EPDS) among healthy Japanese mothers. We distributed the MBS and EPDS self-administered questionnaires to 100 Japanese mothers during their 4-5 day hospitalization and at a health check-up 1-month after delivery, respectively. Multiple regression analyses were performed including the above-mentioned variables as independent variables and the maximum MBS or EPDS scores as dependent variables. The answers "Having a friend I can talk to about maternity life or child rearing" [beta (95% confidence interval) = -1.53 (-2.68 - -0.378)] and "Satogaeri bunben", a Japanese traditional support system wherein a postnatal woman lives with her husband/parents [-2.82 (-4.73 - -0.898)] were significantly associated with MBS scores. The answer "Having a friend I can talk to about maternity life or child rearing" [-2.83 (-4.76 - -0.903)] was also significantly associated with EPDS scores, although the association between the partner's age and these scores was marginally significant [-0.106 (-0.008 - 0.221)]. This study shows that it is important to provide support for healthy women without delivery complications, both at home and in the community.