ReviewThe journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians2014
Depression during pregnancy: a risk factor for adverse neonatal outcomes? A critical review of the literature.
Review in The journal of maternal-fetal & neonatal medicine : the official journal of the European Association of Perinatal Medicine, the Federation of Asia and Oceania Perinatal Societies, the International Society of Perinatal Obstetricians, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03018132 (The PROVIDE Study; Preeclampsia Research on Vitamin D, Inflammation, & Depression), which is not on this map. Cited by 74 papers, 9 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
The PROVIDE Study; Preeclampsia Research on Vitamin D, Inflammation, & Depression
Who cites it
74 citing papers in PubMed, 9 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 157 citations in OpenAlex.
- Early motherhood, early burden: depression among teenage pregnancy and early motherhood in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Pooled it
- Household food insecurity and symptoms of anxiety and depression during pregnancy: Systematic review and meta-analysis.Maternal & child nutrition · 2025Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Global burden of antenatal depression and its association with adverse birth outcomes: an umbrella review.BMC public health · 2020Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Systematic review of the association between dietary patterns and perinatal anxiety and depression.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2019Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Maternal drug use and the risk of anorectal malformations: systematic review and meta-analysis.Orphanet journal of rare diseases · 2018Pooled it
- Prenatal depression and adverse birth outcomes: an updated systematic review.Maternal and child health journal · 2015Pooled it
- Identifying psychosocial predictors and developing a risk score for preterm birth among Kenyan pregnant women.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Trial
- Trial
- Effects of a Brief Electronic Mindfulness-Based Intervention on Relieving Prenatal Depression and Anxiety in Hospitalized High-Risk Pregnant Women: Exploratory Pilot Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2020Trial
- Vitamin D levels and perinatal depressive symptoms in women at risk: a secondary analysis of the mothers, omega-3, and mental health study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2016Trial
- The association between adverse perinatal outcomes, obstructive sleep apnoea and the role of depressive symptoms.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2026Observational
- Midwest Racial and Mental Health Disparities in Pregnancy Outcomes Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Retrospective Study.Health science reports · 2026Article
- Maternal Diet Quality and Third Trimester Depression: Insights From a Nepali Birth Cohort Study.Maternal & child nutrition · 2026Article
- Maternal perinatal mental health and associated factors during the first postpartum year from a longitudinal birth cohort study in Rahim Yar Khan, Pakistan.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2026Article
- Risk factors of the antenatal depression in a sample of Italian pregnant women: a preliminary study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Article
- Antenatal care quality and detection of risk among pregnant women: An observational study in Ethiopia, India, Kenya, and South Africa.PLoS medicine · 2024Observational
- Sexual orientation-related disparities in perinatal mental health among a prospective cohort study.SSM. Mental health · 2024Article
14 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveWe reviewed studies of maternal depression and preterm birth (PTB), low birthweight (LBW) and small-for-gestational-age (SGA) in the context of methodological differences between studies and potential limitations.
methodsWe conducted a literature search of PubMed (1996-2011) for English-language studies of maternal depression and (1) PTB and gestational age (GA), (2) LBW and birthweight (BW) and (3) SGA. Thirty-six studies met eligibility criteria.
resultsElevated depression levels, particularly in early- to mid-pregnancy, appear to increase risk of PTB and SGA. Findings suggest an increased risk for LBW, but were less consistent. Methodological differences and limitations likely contributed to conflicting findings. A wide range of depression measures were used with the majority of studies utilizing measures not designed, or validated, for pregnant women. Studies failed to assess depression at multiple pregnancy time points, thus constraining the ability to assess the impact of duration and pattern of exposure to depression. Antidepressant use and co-morbid psychosocial factors were rarely considered as potential confounders or effect modifiers.
conclusionsStudies suggest that depression during pregnancy may be an important risk factor for PTB and SGA, and possibly LBW. Improved study methodology is needed to elucidate the consequence of maternal depression on adverse birth outcomes.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.