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Post partum depression (PPD) is an important complication of child-bearing. It requires urgent interventions as it can have long-term adverse consequences if ignored, for both mother and child. If PPD has to be prevented by a public health intervention, the recognition and timely identification of its risk factors is must. We in this review have tried to synthesize the results of Asian studies examining the risk factors of PPD. Some risk factors, which are unique to Asian culture, have also been identified and discussed. We emphasize on early identification of these risk factors as most of these are modifiable and this can have significant implications in prevention of emergence of post partum depression, a serious health issue of Asian women.

We sought to evaluate the capacity of the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) in discriminating mental disorders other than depression in pregnant women in northern Mexico. Three hundred pregnant women attending prenatal consultations in a public hospital in Durango City, Mexico submitted a validated EPDS and were examined for mental disorders other than depression using the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - 4th Ed. (DSM-IV) criteria. Sensitivity and specificity of cut-off points of the EPDS, and positive and negative predictive values were calculated. Of the 300 pregnant women studied, 21 had mental disorders other than depression by the DSM-IV criteria. The best EPDS score for screening mental disorders other than depression was 8/9. This threshold showed a sensitivity of 52.4%, a specificity of 67.0%, a positive predictive value of 11.5%, a negative predictive value of 95.4%, and an area under the curve of 0.643 (95% confidence interval: 0.52-0.76). The EPDS can be considered for screening mental disorders other than depression in Mexican pregnant women whenever a cut-off score of 8/9 is used. However, the tool showed small power to separate pregnant women with and without mental disorders other than depression.

Understanding parental psychopathology interaction is important in preventing negative family outcomes. This study investigated the effect of paternal psychiatric history on maternal depressive symptom trajectory from birth to 12 months postpartum. Maternal Edinburgh Postpartum Depression screens were collected at 1, 6 and 12 months and fathers' psychiatric diagnoses were assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV from 64 families. There was not a significant difference in the trajectory of maternal depressive symptoms between mothers with partners with history of or a current psychiatric condition or those without a condition. However, mothers with partners with substance abuse history had higher levels of depressive symptoms relative to those affected by mood/anxiety disorders or those without a disorder. Our results call for a closer look at paternal history of substance abuse when treating postpartum maternal depression.

Studies of the first year of infant psychomotor development in cases of maternal postpartum depression are lacking. The mother and baby unit (MBU) is a healthcare system available to infants and their mothers during the postpartum period in a psychiatric hospital, which provides support and preserves the parent's role in the child's daily care. The aim of the paper is to describe the developmental profile of babies of mothers with severe postpartum depression treated in an MBU through the developmental quotients. Using the Brunet-Lézine scale, we studied six-month-old infants whose mothers were hospitalized. The study population consisted of 15 infants. The mean global developmental quotient score was 96.7. A developmental quotient lower than 80 was not observed for any of the children. We found no global psychomotor developmental delays. Despite this, the posture subscore was the area in which we observed the most difficulties. It is possible that the tonic dialogue between the mother and infant is disrupted by maternal depression.

To delve further into the phenomenon of psychological pressure on single mothers, the purpose of this paper is to explore the factors that affect the psychological state of single mothers in Vietnam.

Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) interviews were conducted and analysed with the aim of understanding the psychological state of single mothers sampled from a social group in Vietnam.

Single mothers lack direct support needed to improve their confidence, job opportunities, income levels and social status. The absence of interventions increases the psychological pressure on single mothers in Vietnam.

A future study can explore the psychological state of single mothers using a more expansive data set.

Understanding the psychosocial and socio-economic risk factors of postpartum psychological pressure in single mothers may have important implications on preventative and support measures, as well as laying the groundwork for social protection interventions and informing welfare policy-making at a national level.

Social constructs in Vietnam compound the effect of postnatal depression on Vietnamese single mothers (in contrast to their counterparts in developed Western nations). This means that researchers and policymakers need to reconstruct stigmas that cause psychological pressures on single motherhood, and in doing so, help to change the view held about single motherhood.

This study is the first to explore psychological state of mothers in Vietnam using IPA.

People who experience mental illness often demonstrate limited help-seeking behaviours. There is evidence to suggest that media content can influence negative attitudes towards mental illness; less is known about how media impacts help-seeking behaviours. The purpose of this study is to identify if media plays a role in people’s decisions to seek help for their mental health.

The databases Academic Search Complete, CINAHL Plus with Full Text, MEDLINE, APA PsycArticles, APA PsycInfo, Social Sciences Full Text [H.W. Wilson] and Soc Index were systemically searched for papers in the English language that investigated the link between media and help-seeking for mental illness.

Sixteen studies met eligibility criteria. There was some evidence to suggest that various forms of media – including video and online resources – can positively influence help-seeking for mental health. Print media had some limited effect on help-seeking behaviours but was weaker in comparison to other forms of media. There was no evidence to suggest that media discourages people from seeking help.

This review identified that, given the heterogeneity of the included papers, and the limited evidence available, there is a need for more focused research to determine how media impacts mental health-related help-seeking behaviours.