North America United States Within the United States, the prevalence of<unk>  was lower than the global approximation at 11.5% but varied between states from as low as 8% to as high as 20.1%. The highest prevalence in the US is found among women who are American Indian/Alaska Natives or Asian/Pacific Islanders, possess less than 12 years of education, are unmarried, smoke during pregnancy, experience over two stressful life events, or who’s full term infant is low-birthweight or was admitted to a Newborn Intensive Care Unit. While US prevalence decreased from 2004 to 2012, it did not decrease among American Indian/Alaska Native women or those with full term, low-birthweight infants. Even with the variety of studies, it is difficult to find the exact rate as approximately 60% of US women are not diagnosed and of those diagnosed approximately 50% are not treated for<unk> . Cesarean section rates did not affect the rates of<unk> . While there is discussion of<unk>  in fathers, there is no formal diagnosis for<unk>  in fathers. Canada Canada has one of the largest refugee resettlement in the world with an equal percentage of women to men. This means that Canada has a disproportionate percentage of women that develop<unk>  since there is an increased risk among the refugee population. In a blind study, where women had to reach out and participate, around 27% of the sample population had symptoms consistent with<unk>  without even knowing. Also found that on average 8.46 women had minor and major<unk> S was found to be 8.46 and 8.69% respectively. The main factors that were found to contribute in this study were the stress during pregnancy, the availability of support after, and a prior diagnosis of depression were all found to be factors. Canada has the specific population demographics that also involve a large amount of immigrant and indigenous women which creates a specific cultural demographic localized to Canada. In this study researchers found that these two populations were at significantly higher risk compared to “Canadian born non-indigenous mothers”. This study found that risk factors such as low education, low income cut off, taking antidepressants, and low social support are all factors that contribute to the higher percentage of these population in developing<unk> S. Specifically, indigenous mothers had the most risk factors then immigrant mothers with non-indigenous Canadian women being closer to the overall population. South America A main issue surrounding<unk>  is the lack of study and the lack of reported prevalence that is based on studies developed in Western economically developed countries. In countries such as Brazil, Guyana, Costa Rica, Italy, Chile, and South Africa there is actually a prevalence of report, around 60%. In an itemized research analysis put a mean prevalence at 10-15% percent but explicitly stated that cultural factors such as perception of mental health and stigma could possibly be preventing accurate reporting. The analysis for south America shows that<unk>  occurs at a high rate looking comparatively at brazil (42%) Chile (4.6-48%) Guyana and Colombia (57%) and Venezuela (22%). In most of these countries<unk>  is not considered a serious condition for women and therefore there is an absence of support programs for prevention and treatment in health systems. Specifically, in Brazil<unk>  is identified through the family environment whereas in Chile<unk>  manifests itself through suicidal ideation and emotional instability. In both cases most women feel regret and refuse to take care of the child showing that this illness is serious for both the mother and child. Asia From a selected group of studies found from a literature search, researchers discovered many demographic factors of Asian populations that showed significant association with<unk> . Some of these include age of mother at the time of childbirth as well as older age at marriage. Being a migrant and giving birth to a child overseas has also been identified as a risk factor for<unk> . Specifically for Japanese women who were born and raised in Japan but who gave birth to their child in Hawaii, USA, about 50% of them experienced emotional dysfunction during their pregnancy. In fact, all women who gave birth for the first time who were included in the study experienced<unk> . In immigrant Asian Indian women, the researchers found a minor depressive symptomatology rate of 28% and an additional major depressive symptomatology rate of 24% likely due to different health care attitudes in different cultures and distance form family leading to homesickness. In the context of Asian countries, premarital pregnancy is an important risk factor for<unk> . This is because it is considered highly unacceptable in most Asian culture as there is a highly conservative attitude toward sex among Asian people than people in the west. In addition, conflicts between mother and daughter-in-law are notoriously common in Asian societies as traditionally for them, marriage means the daughter-in-law joining and adjusting to the groom’s family completely. These conflicts may be responsible for emergence of<unk> . Regarding gender of the child, many studies have suggested dissatisfaction in infant’s gender (birth of a baby girl) is a risk factor for<unk> . This is because in some Asian cultures, married couples are expected by the family to have at least one son to maintain the continuity of the bloodline which might lead a woman to experience<unk>  if she cannot give birth to a baby boy. Europe There is a general assumption that Western cultures are homogenous and that there are no significant differences in psychiatric disorders across Europe and the USA. However, in reality factors associated with maternal depression, including work and environmental demands, access to universal maternity leave, health care, and financial security, are regulated and influenced by local policies that differ across countries. For example, European social policies differ from country-to-country contrary to the USA, all countries provide some form of paid universal maternity leave and free health care. Studies also found differences in symptomatic manifestations of<unk>  between European and American women. Women from Europe reported higher scores of anhedonia, self-blaming, and anxiety, while women from the USA disclosed more severe insomnia, depressive feelings, and thoughts of self-harming. Additionally, there are differences in prescribing patterns and attitudes towards certain medications between the USA and Europe which are indicative of how different countries approach treatment, and their different stigmas. Africa Africa, like all other parts of the world struggles with a burden of<unk> . Current studies estimate the prevalence to be 15-25% but this is likely higher due to a lack of data and recorded cases. The magnitude of<unk>  in South Africa is between 31.7% and 39.6%, in Morocco between 6.9% and 14%, in Nigeria between 10.7% and 22.9%, in Uganda 43%, in Tanzania 12%, in Zimbabwe 33%, in Sudan 9.2%, in Kenya between 13% and 18.7% and, 19.9% for participants in Ethiopia according to studies carried out in these countries among postpartum mothers between the ages of 17-49. This demonstrates the gravity of this problem in Africa, and the need for<unk>  to be taken seriously as a public health concern in the continent. Additionally, each of these studies were conducted using Western developed assessment tools. Cultural factors can affect diagnosis and can be a barrier to assessing the burden of disease. Some recommendations to combat<unk>  in Africa include considering<unk>  as a public health problem that is neglected among postpartum mothers. Investing in research to assess the actual prevalence of<unk> , and encourage early screening, diagnosis and treatment of<unk>  as an essential aspect of maternal care throughout Africa. Issues in Reporting Prevalence Most studies regarding<unk>  are done using self-report screenings which are less reliable than clinical interviews. This use of self-report may have results that underreport symptoms and thus<unk>  rates.
Postpartum depression
Postpartum blues
Postpartum disorder
Dysphoric milk ejection reflex
Postpartum psychosis
Premenstrual syndrome
Post-adoption depression syndrome
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder