ABSTRACT

Background: Mental health problems during pregnancy have a significant negative impact on the mother, fetus, and the health of the child after birth. Depression is a symptom of mental health disorders that often occurs in the antenatal period.

Aim: The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence, related factors, and the influence of social support on AD symptoms in pregnant women in Asian countries.

Method: This study was an article review. The articles were searched using the MEDLINE (Pubmed), Google Scholar, Plos One database published from 2008-2018. The keywords used included "antenatal depression," "Asia," "social support."

Results: Overall, the prevalence of AD symptoms in Asian countries varied from 6.5% to 46.8%. The factors most associated with AD symptoms were categorized into five elements, namely socio-demography (age and income), biology (history of previous depression and PMS (premenstrual syndrome), genetic (history of depression in the family), psychosocial (history of sexual violence, adverse events/stressors in life, relationship in marriage, and social support), and obstetric factors (unplanned pregnancy). Low social support has a strong influence on the occurrence of AD symptoms. The prevalence of symptoms of antenatal depression in Asian countries is reported to increase more than that in Western countries.

Conclusion: Social support is one of the psychosocial factors that can be modified to prevent antenatal depression. This study recommends policymakers in Asian countries to make policies regarding maternal mental health screening, especially in the antenatal period through continuity of care by midwives.

Keyword: antenatal depression, social support, Asian women