Epidemiology of perinatal depression in Italy: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: This review aims to synthesise the studies that have estimated the prevalence of perinatal depression in Italy, summarising the results of the existing literature based on their quality.

Materials and methods: Systematic searches were conducted in four major databases, and a random effect meta-analysis was performed to achieve the pooled variance of perinatal depression.

Results: The pooled prepartum risk of depression prevalence was 20.2% (CI 95% 15.3-24.5) while the postpartum risk of depression prevalence was 27.5% (CI 95% 17.8-37.3) for an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) cut-off score ≥9 and 11.1% (CI 95% 6.0-16.2) for an EPDS cut-off score ≥12. Significant publication bias was found and was determined by the presence of a small study with a low prevalence and a large study with a high prevalence.

Conclusion: The prevalence of perinatal risk of depression is similar to that reported in other countries. The high prevalence of prepartum risk suggests the need to activate specific prevention actions during this period.