Mental distress and demographic, behavioral, obstetric characteristics, and health condition in pregnant women

Introduction. Mental distress can have consequences for the health of women and children. Objective. To estimate the prevalence of mental distress and to identify its association with socioeconomic, demographic, health-related behaviors, obstetrics, and health status in pregnant women. Method. Cross-sectional study carried out with women undergoing prenatal care at the Unified Health System in Colombo-Paraná. The prevalence of mental distress was investigated using the Self-Reporting Questionnaire. Results. Among pregnant women (n = 605), the prevalence of mental distress was 47.9% (95% CI [44.0, 51.9]). After an adjusted analysis, the following was associated with the outcome: living without a partner (PR 1.27; 95% CI [1.06, 1.52]), having up to seven years of schooling (PR 1.30; 95% CI [1.04, 1.63]), performing moderate or intense physical activity (PR 1.47; 95% CI [1.02, 2.12]), consuming alcohol in the last 12 months (PR 1.29; 95% CI [1.08, 1.54]), being in the third pregnancy (PR 1.33; 95% CI [1.06, 1.67]), in the last trimester of pregnancy (PR 1.43; 95% CI [1.06, 1.94]), and the presence of a common pregnancy symptom (PR 1.56; 95% CI [1.15, 2.11]). Discussion and conclusion. Comprehensive mental health care during pregnancy is necessary especially for women in social vulnerability, at the end of pregnancy, and with worse health.