Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa
Background/objective: In South Africa, approximately 40% of women suffer from depression during pregnancy. Although perinatal depression and anxiety are significant public health problems impacting maternal and infant morbidity and mortality, no routine mental health screening programmes exist in th...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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AOSIS
2017-04-01
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| Series: | South African Journal of Psychiatry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1013 |
| _version_ | 1811291424523550720 |
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| author | Carina Marsay Lenore Manderson Ugasvaree Subramaney |
| author_facet | Carina Marsay Lenore Manderson Ugasvaree Subramaney |
| author_sort | Carina Marsay |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background/objective: In South Africa, approximately 40% of women suffer from depression during pregnancy. Although perinatal depression and anxiety are significant public health problems impacting maternal and infant morbidity and mortality, no routine mental health screening programmes exist in the country. A practical, accurate screening tool is needed to identify cases in these busy, resource-scarce settings.
Method: A convenience sample of 145 women between 22 and 28 weeks gestation was recruited from Rahima Moosa Hospital antenatal clinic in Johannesburg. All women completed a biographical interview, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Whooley questions and a structured clinical interview.
Results: The results demonstrate the sensitivity and specificity of the Whooley questions and the EPDS in identifying depression, anxiety and stress disorders of varying severity. The importance of personal, social and cultural context in influencing the content and expression of these common perinatal conditions was also identified.
Discussion and conclusion: The validity of the Whooley questions in the context of urban South Africa, and the importance of ensuring clinical interviews to supplement any screening tools, is emphasised. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T04:29:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0ccfcb31880142e4a57a4cbb3e0757c5 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1608-9685 2078-6786 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T04:29:10Z |
| publishDate | 2017-04-01 |
| publisher | AOSIS |
| record_format | Article |
| series | South African Journal of Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj.art-0ccfcb31880142e4a57a4cbb3e0757c52022-12-22T03:02:23ZengAOSISSouth African Journal of Psychiatry1608-96852078-67862017-04-0123010.4102/sajpsychiatry.v23i0.1013366Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South AfricaCarina Marsay0Lenore Manderson1Ugasvaree Subramaney2Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the WitwatersrandSchool of Public Health, University of the Witwatersrand,Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa and Sterkfontein HospitalBackground/objective: In South Africa, approximately 40% of women suffer from depression during pregnancy. Although perinatal depression and anxiety are significant public health problems impacting maternal and infant morbidity and mortality, no routine mental health screening programmes exist in the country. A practical, accurate screening tool is needed to identify cases in these busy, resource-scarce settings. Method: A convenience sample of 145 women between 22 and 28 weeks gestation was recruited from Rahima Moosa Hospital antenatal clinic in Johannesburg. All women completed a biographical interview, the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), the Whooley questions and a structured clinical interview. Results: The results demonstrate the sensitivity and specificity of the Whooley questions and the EPDS in identifying depression, anxiety and stress disorders of varying severity. The importance of personal, social and cultural context in influencing the content and expression of these common perinatal conditions was also identified. Discussion and conclusion: The validity of the Whooley questions in the context of urban South Africa, and the importance of ensuring clinical interviews to supplement any screening tools, is emphasised.https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1013perinatal depressionscreeningSouth Africa |
| spellingShingle | Carina Marsay Lenore Manderson Ugasvaree Subramaney Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa South African Journal of Psychiatry perinatal depression screening South Africa |
| title | Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa |
| title_full | Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa |
| title_fullStr | Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa |
| title_full_unstemmed | Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa |
| title_short | Validation of the Whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low-income women in urban South Africa |
| title_sort | validation of the whooley questions for antenatal depression and anxiety among low income women in urban south africa |
| topic | perinatal depression screening South Africa |
| url | https://sajp.org.za/index.php/sajp/article/view/1013 |
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