SEASONAL-VARIATION IN THE PREVALENCE OF POSTNATAL DEPRESSION

The seasonal variation of postnatal depression was investigated amongst mothers and fathers in a sample of 200 couples from the postnatal ward of a general hospital maternity unit. There were 28 mothers and 13 fathers who were interview cases of depression according to the RDC criteria. Onset of cases amongst mothers showed a significant seasonal variation with the largest peak occurring in the Autumn, the implications are discussed. The pattern of seasonal variation in fathers is described but there were too few cases to make statistical evaluation meaningful.