Paper: Postpartum Depression in Previously Infertile Women: A Meta-Analysis (Sigma Theta Tau International's 21st International Nursing Research Congress)

Tuesday, 13 July 2010

Sigrid Lynn Ladores, MSN, ARNP
College of Nursing, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL

Learning Objective 1: discuss how qualitative research approaches are well suited to study the phenomenon of postpartum depression in previously infertile women.

Learning Objective 2: describe research implications from the qualitative literature on postpartum depression and infertility.

Introduction: Postpartum depression (PPD) is a growing public health concern that affects 10-20% of women globally. Many women with PPD struggle to recognize their symptoms. This is especially true for previously infertile mothers who repress their desire for help because the only emotion expected of them is happiness over the much-anticipated outcome of a baby. Infertile women are at risk for developing depression during fertility treatment and pregnancy even when treatment is successful. PPD has been well-studied quantitatively, however, qualitative studies are scarce. Qualitative approaches extract how these women make sense of their world.

Methods: The search strategy included databases Medline, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and PsycARTICLES along with keywords such as postpartum depression, infertility, reproductive technology, and qualitative research. Inclusion criteria included peer-reviewed, primary research articles written in English and published after 1999. Classic and seminal works were included. Exclusion criteria included review articles, secondary analyses, and presence of other mood disorders with PPD. A total of 17 articles for PPD and 7 articles for infertility were extracted.

Results: The qualitative data available on PPD and infertility revealed diverse cultural contexts, sample sizes, ages, qualitative methods used, and overall findings. Six similar result categories were extracted. In synthesizing the results of both literature, it is clear that previously infertile mothers endure cumulative attacks to their physical and psychosocial beings. These women are often misunderstood and mistreated. The importance of formal and informal support networks is underscored to reconcile the gaps between myths and realities of motherhood, and lead these women unto a path of recovery.

Discussion & Conclusions: It is evident that more qualitative research needs to be completed on this vulnerable population. The current state of the science is in its infancy. Herein lies an opportunity for researchers to establish a program of research that addresses the needs of this marginalized group of women.

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