The impact of the catastrophic earthquake in China's Sichuan province on the mental health of pregnant women

BackgroundOn May 12, 2008, a magnitude 8.0 earthquake struck China's southwestern Sichuan province. Recent studies have identified mental health problems among the survivors, but little is known about the impact of the Sichuan earthquake on the mental health of pregnant women in the area. The main objective was to assess the impact of the Sichuan earthquake on the mental health of pregnant women in earthquake stricken areas.MethodsDuring November 2009 and January 2010, 311 pregnant women were interviewed. Symptoms of PTSD were measured using IES-R, while symptoms of antenatal depression were measured using EPDS.ResultsThe prevalence rate of PTSD symptoms was 12.2% (95% CI, 9.0-16.4). The rate of major depression was 40.8% (95% CI, 35.5-46.4). Living through an earthquake has been significantly correlated with PTSD but no significant correlation has been found with depression. The perceived stresses of pregnancy are significantly correlated with both depression and PTSD.LimitationsLack of long term follow up data and comparison group from non earthquake struck area.Conclusions18 months after the Sichuan earthquake, the incidence of depression and PTSD were still quite high among pregnant women in the earthquake stricken areas. Depression was more common than PTSD. Living through an earthquake has been significantly correlated with PTSD but not with depression.