Intimate partner violence among pregnant women and postpartum depression in Vietnam: A longitudinal study

Abstract

Background. Exposure to intimate partner violence during pregnancy is associated with a wide range of adverse reproductive health outcomes. However, detailed knowledge on the association between specifc types of exposure to partner violence and postpartum depression is limited. Purpose. Te aim of the present study was to investigate the association between exposure to emotional violence, physical violence, and sexual violence during pregnancy and postpartum depression among women in northern Vietnam. Methods. Te study was designed as a longitudinal study, which included a total of 1,337 women. Te study participants were recruited from 24 communes in Dong Anh District, Hanoi, Vietnam, and interviewed four times: (a) at enrolment (which took place no later than week 24 of the pregnancy); (b) at a gestational age of 30-34 weeks; (c) at delivery; and d) 4-12 weeks afer delivery. Emotional, physical, and sexual violence exerted by the intimate partner were measured using a modifed version of the questionnaire initially developed by the World Health Organization, and signs of depression were measured by the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale. Results. More than one-third of the women (35.3%) experienced at least one type of violence during their pregnancy and 8.2% of the women reported postpartum depression. Te results of multivariate analyses showed that both physical and sexual violence were statistically signifcantly associated with postpartum depression (AOR=2.75, 95%CI: 1.19-6.35 and AOR=1.93, 95%CI: 1.01-3.73, respectively). Conclusions. Te results showed strong and statistically signifcant associations between partner violence and postpartum depression. Tese fndings clearly demonstrate a crucial need for relevant health professionals to identify women who are exposed to partner violence and screen for postpartum depression in order to mitigate the negative mental health outcomes among Vietnamese women.