The Effectiveness of Mindfulness -Based Intervention on Anxiety, Stress and Depression in the Perinatal Period: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Abstract

Introduction: Pregnancy or perinatal period is important because there are many types of mental health problems experienced by pregnant and postpartum women. Anxiety, stress, and depression in perinatal period in many ways can cause various effects on the mother and fetus. Given the importance of perinatal mental health problems, this study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of mindfulness-based intervention on anxiety, stress and depression in the perinatal period. Methods: This randomized clinical trial was conducted on 80 pregnant women aged 18-45 years old, referring to healthcare centers in Ardebil during 26-30 weeks of gestation who had depression score between 12-20 based on Edinburgh scale. The eligible women were randomly assigned into mindfulness-based intervention or control group through stratified blocking method by numbers of pregnancies (nulliparity and multipariti) with four and six blocks and 1:1 allocation ratio. PASS anxiety, PSS stress and Edinburgh depression scales were completed at baseline, immediately after intervention, at childbirth and 6 weeks after it. Anthropometric indices and type of delivery were evaluated. The primary outcome was the mean difference in anxiety, stress and depression scores. All analysis were based on intention to treat. Results: Before the intervention, no significant difference was observed in the socio-demographic characteristics, mean score of anxiety, stress, and depression between the intervention and control groups (P>0.05). Compared to the control group significant reductions were observed in the mean scores of anxiety (adjusted difference:39.1; 95% CI:-33.4 to -44.8), stress (-16.6; -14.1 to -19.2), and depression (-13.1; -12.1 to -14.1) immediately after intervention, in the mean scores of anxiety ( -39.1; -33/5 to -44.7), stress (-18.2; -15.7 to -20.6) and depression (-3.3; -2.4 to -4.2) at childbirth, as well as in the mean scores of anxiety ( -33.3; -28.7 to -38.5), stress (-18.1; -15.6 to -20.6) and depression (-13.9; -12.8 to -14.9) 6 weeks after childbirth (P<0.001).Conclusion This study demonstrated the effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Intervention on anxiety, stress and depression in the perinatal period. Therefore, Mindfulness-Based Intervention recommended as a complementary, effective, and non-invasive intervention in the control of perinatal mental health problems.