Effects of an Infant-Focused Relationship-Based Hospital and Home Visiting Intervention on Reducing Symptoms of Postpartum Maternal Depression: A Pilot Study

• Published in: Infants and young children Vol. 27; no. 4; pp. 292 - 304
• Main Authors: Nugent, J. Kevin, Bartlett, Jessica Dym, Valim, Clarissa
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frederick Lippincott Williams & Wilkins 01-10-2014; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Ovid Technologies
• Subjects: Babies; Behavior modification; Birth; Comparative Analysis; Control Groups; Cost Effectiveness; Depression (Psychology); Experimental Groups; Home Visits; Hospitals; Infants; Intervention; Mental Health; Mothers; Neonates; New England; Personal relationships; Postpartum depression; Program Effectiveness; Psychological Patterns; Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
• ISSN: 0896-3746; 1550-5081
• DOI: 10.1097/IYC.0000000000000017

Relationship-based interventions are an effective means for reducing postpartum depression (PPD), but few cost-effective tools that can be administered efficiently in medical and home settings are available or well-studied. This study examines the efficacy of the Newborn Behavioral Observations (NBO), an infant-centered relationship-based intervention, in reducing levels of postnatal maternal depression. First-time mothers and their infants were recruited in the postpartum units of 2 New England hospitals and randomized into intervention and control groups. A total of 106 mothers participated in this study. At 1 month postpartum, symptoms of PPD were assessed using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Ten of the 106 mothers reported elevated levels of depressive symptoms (EPDS score >12), with 4% in the intervention group and 16% in the control group. Results indicated that the NBO was associated with lowering the odds of depressive symptomatology by approximately 75%. These findings suggest that the NBO conducted in hospital and home settings may be an efficient, cost-effective, relationship-based method for reducing the likelihood of PPD.