PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Ganesh Pawar AU - Christine Wetzker AU - Dwenda Gjerdingen TI - Prevalence of Depressive Symptoms in the Immediate Postpartum Period AID - 10.3122/jabfm.2011.03.100249 DP - 2011 May 01 TA - The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine PG - 258--261 VI - 24 IP - 3 4099 - http://www.jabfm.org/content/24/3/258.short 4100 - http://www.jabfm.org/content/24/3/258.full SO - J Am Board Fam Med2011 May 01; 24 AB - Purpose: There is currently little information about rates of positive maternal depression screens immediately after delivery; rather, most studies have assessed the prevalence of major depression between 1 and 6 months postpartum. This study investigated the rate of positive 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) surveys within 1 to 2 days after delivery.Methods: A retrospective chart review of PHQ-9 results obtained within 1 to 2 days after childbirth was performed on 441 women who delivered at 3 St. Paul, MN, hospitals during February 2010.Results: Out of 441 deliveries recorded during the study period, PHQ-9 results were available for 361 women (81.9%). A total of 9 women (2.5%) had positive PHQ-9 scores within 1 to 2 days after delivery.Conclusion: We found very low rates of depressive symptoms during the immediate postpartum period, which leads us to suggest that this is not an ideal time for postpartum depression screening or evaluation.