Postpartum depression risk may be lower among mothers with medically assisted pregnancies

Mothers who conceived after medically assisted reproduction interventions appear to be less likely to have postpartum depression compared with those who conceived spontaneously, as suggested in a study.

Researchers looked at 125,870 mothers with a postpartum depression screening record who gave birth between 2015 and 2019 in Denmark. They linked screening records to national health registers.

Postpartum depression was defined as an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale score of ≥11. Logistic regression was used to examine the risk of postpartum depression between mothers who conceived via medically assisted reproduction and those who conceived spontaneously.

Of the mothers, 10,977 conceived with the help of medically assisted reproduction interventions and 114,893 conceived spontaneously. Postpartum depression occurred in 767 and 8,767 mothers in the respective groups (7 percent vs 8 percent).

Compared with spontaneous conception, conception via medically assisted reproduction was associated with a lower risk of postpartum depression (adjusted risk ratio, 0.87, 95 percent confidence interval, 0.80–0.93). Type, duration, and indication for medically assisted reproduction did not significantly alter the result.

The researchers pointed out that medically assisted reproduction itself is protective against postpartum depression. The findings may be explained by women who seek medically assisted reproduction potentially having a strong desire and psychological preparedness for parenthood.