Prevalence of depression in fathers was similar to that of mothers screened at well-child visits, according to a research letter published in JAMA Pediatrics.
An analysis of data obtained from the Child Health Improvement through Computer Automation (CHICA) pediatric health surveillance system found that 4.4% of fathers who attended the well-child visit and completed a prescreening form scored positive for depression, comparable with the rate in mothers (5%). Overall, fathers composed 11.7% of parents who screened positive for depression, reported Erika R. Cheng, PhD, of Indiana University, Indianapolis, and her colleagues.
Dr. Cheng and her colleagues estimated prevalence of paternal depression using CHICA data from parents of children aged 15 months and younger from five community health centers in Indianapolis between August 1, 2016, and December 31, 2017. CHICA is a 20-question prescreen of pediatric health conditions based on the patient’s existing data.
Maternal postpartum depression was assessed using a modified version of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, administered every 90 days during the child’s first 15 months of life, Dr. Cheng and her colleagues wrote.
Fathers were present at 30.8% of well-child visits (2,946 of 9,572) and completed the prescreening at 806 visits (8.4% of total visits). A total of 36 (4.4%) fathers screened positive for depression, compared with 273 (5%) mothers. However, since CHICA assesses depression for only one parent, some cases of paternal depression may have been missed, the investigators added.
“Pediatric clinics are thus promising settings in which to address depression in both parents as part of a family-centered approach to care,” Dr. Cheng and her coauthors concluded. “Addressing these gaps could improve detection and treatment rates of postnatal depression in both mothers and fathers.”
Two of the authors coinvented the CHICA system, and one is a co-owner of Digital Health Solutions, which licensed the system. No other disclosures were reported.
SOURCE: Cheng ER et al. JAMA Pediatr. 2018 Jul 23. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2018.1505.