COVID-19 affects the mental health of pregnant women

According to a study led by Professor Anick Bérard, 23% of pregnant and postpartum women experienced major depressive symptoms during the first three waves of the pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected Canadian women's mental health both during pregnancy and in the postpartum period, confirms the CONCEPTION study led by Anick Bérard, researcher at CHU Sainte-Justine and professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy at the Université de Montréal. And the impact has been even greater than in other historical crises here and abroad, such as the Zika virus epidemic and the 1998 Quebec ice storm, shows the study , published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. The study focuses on the first three waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the data collected, 23 per cent of pregnant or postpartum women in Canada suffered from major depressive symptoms, and nearly 40 per cent of them suffered from moderate to severe symptoms, associated primarily with anxiety and stress. "While much attention is paid to the physical health of pregnant women, these findings prove that attention must also be paid to their mental health," said Professor Bérard. "Appropriate psychological support programs during and after childbirth need to be established." The CONCEPTION study also showed that women who gave birth during the pandemic had more severe symptoms of depression than expectant mothers.