Prevalence of Maternal Postnatal Anxiety and Its Association With Demographic and Socioeconomic Factors: A Multicentre Study in Italy

Anxiety is a common perinatal disorder that can cause severe adverse consequences.
This study (a) assesses the prevalence of maternal postnatal anxious symptomatology,
and (b) analyses its association with demographic and socioeconomic variables as well as
obstetric and other psychosocial variables. The assessment included 307 mothers aged
≥18 years with a biological baby aged ≤52 weeks and from seven Italian healthcare
centres, evaluated using a Psychosocial and Clinical Assessment Form (also covering
demographic and socioeconomic factors), and the state scale of the State-Trait Anxiety
Inventory. We found an overall prevalence of self-reported postnatal anxious symptoms
of 34.2%. More specifically, the prevalence was 34.5% at 1–24 weeks postpartum,
and 30.8% at >24 weeks postpartum. No associations between postnatal anxious
symptoms and demographic or socioeconomic variables were observed. As regards the
other variables, the findings indicated antenatal depression or anxiety, parity, and current
psychological support from the partner as having the strongest relationships.