Mode of birth and long-term maternal mental health: A follow-up study in the Danish National Birth Cohort

Background

Cesarean birth has been associated with increased risks of short-term mental health problems. Little is known about whether these associations persist in the long term. This study aimed to estimate the associations between mode of birth and maternal mental health in midlife while considering mental health before and during pregnancy.

Methods

Cohort study among mothers in the Danish National Birth Cohort. Birth mode for each woman's entire reproductive history was obtained from Danish national registries. Symptoms of depression and stress in midlife were self-reported using validated scales. Log binomial regression was used to calculate risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the association between birth mode and depressive symptoms. Linear regression was used to calculate mean difference in stress score by birth mode.

Results

Among 42,872 women, 15.5% reported depressive symptoms at follow-up, where they were, on average, 43.9 years and 11.2 years after their last birth. Compared with women who only ever had spontaneous vaginal births, women who only had cesarean births, or had both cesarean and vaginal births with the last birth by cesarean, reported slightly more symptoms of depression (RR 1.10, 95% CI 1.01;1.20) and stress (mean difference 0.68 on a 100-point scale, 95% CI 0.10;1.26).

Conclusion

Whether due to the birth experience or underlying factors, depression and stress in midlife were more frequent in women with only cesarean births or whose last birth was by cesarean compared with women with vaginal births.