The Relationship between Pregnancy Intention, Pregnancy Outcomes, Postpartum Depression, and Maternal Role Adaptation

Abstract Introduction: Unplanned pregnancy and its complications are a global problem that affects women, families, and the community. Objective: This study aimed to assess the relationship between pregnancy intention, pregnancy outcomes, postpartum depression, and maternal role adaptation in pregnant women referred to healthcare centers of Robat Karim City, Iran.  Materials and Methods: This cohort study was conducted on 240 pregnant women referred to the healthcare centers of Robat Karim in 2019. They were selected by the convenience sampling method. After completing the London questionnaire in the 26th week of gestation, the participants were equally divided into planned and unplanned pregnancy groups. Edinburgh postnatal depression scale and parenting sense of competency scale were completed 10 days and 30 days after delivery. The obtained data were presented by descriptive statistics and analyzed by the Chi-square and t test for comparison between two groups and structural equation model for assessing the relationship between variables. Results: The mean ± SD values of age, marital duration time, and gravidity number of participants were 30±7.1, 1.5±0.02, and 5, respectively. The results revealed a significant difference between the two groups concerning the mean score of postpartum depression and maternal competency, 10 and 30 days after delivery (P=0.001). The results of path analysis showed that pregnancy intention had a negative and significant effect on postpartum depression (B = -0.58, t value=-2.5), but a positive and significant impact on maternal competency (B = 0.39, t value=-2). According to the determined amount of variance, the variable of intention to pregnancy predicts 33% of postpartum depression (R2=0.33). Also, two variables of pregnancy intention and postpartum depression predict 55% of maternal competency (R2=0.55).  Conclusion:  Pregnancy intention had a significant effect on maternal depression and competency. It is recommended that pregnancy intention be screened during pregnancy, and also appropriate training and social support be provided for mothers with unplanned pregnancies.