Effectiveness of a package of community-based mental healthcare services to address perinatal mental disorders in Bangladesh: A cluster-randomized controlled trial

Background

Perinatal mental disorders of women have an impact on their pregnancy and their child’s brain development across low and middle-income countries. However, to address this issue, there are no specific guidelines for community-level service providers in Bangladesh. Therefore, we aimed to develop a community-based mental healthcare (CBMHC) service package and test its effectiveness in reducing depression, anxiety, and stress among mothers during the perinatal period.

Methods

A cluster-randomized controlled trial (cRCT) was applied to test the CBMHC package in 2017 and 2018. It was provided to one group of mothers along with routine maternal care while another group received only routine maternal care. Paired sample t-test was applied to assess mean changes at baseline and endline in the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21) and EuroQol-5 Dimension and 3 Level (EQ5D3L) scales. A linear mixed-effects model was used to assess the relationship between the DASS-21 score and EQ5D3L.

Results

1215 participants were enrolled, including 605 in the intervention group and 610 in the control group. Measures of depression, anxiety, and stress were significantly decreased in both groups. Reduction in the levels of stress, as measured by changes in the stress score, were significantly greater in the intervention than in the control group (diff: 1.2, 95 % CI: 0.1, 2.2). The EQ5D3L index improved significantly, 0.02 units more at endline in the intervention group than in the control group (diff: 0.02, 95 % CI: 0.007, 0.03). The levels of mobility, usual activities, pain or discomfort, depression, and anxiety improved by 1.4 %, 7.6 %, 4.4 %, 2.6 %, and 0.4 % more, respectively, in the intervention group compared to the control groups. These improvements were statistically significant. The DASS-21 score was negatively and significantly correlated with both the EQ-5D3L index and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) score for the intervention group as well as for the usual care group, indicating that EQ5D3L improved when common mental disorders decreased.

Conclusion

Although the improvements were modest, a CBMHC service package was effective in reducing perinatal levels of stress among Bangladeshi rural women.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT03678415