Background: The mental health of the mother influences early mother-infant relationship. This study aimed to explore the relations between maternal psychopathologies, particularly postpartum depression, social-obstetrical factors and mother-infant bonding.
Methods: One hundred and eighty-nine mother-infant pairs who participated in the longitudinal study entitled "Mother-Infant Care Study" were evaluated at the second month postpartum. The Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) had been applied to all mothers in the first 3 days postpartum. At the second month postpartum, mothers were assessed with the Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS), Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire (PBQ), and Mother-Infant Bonding Scale (MIBS).
Results: The mean maternal age was 25.1 (± 5.2) years. The EPDS scores were higher in the mothers who had been supported lifelong by a psychologist due to psychological problems, had a birth interval of ≤ 2 years, and had smoking habits at the second month postpartum. Mothers with a female infant had higher PBQ score than those with a male infant. The EPDS score was correlated positively with the PBQ and MIBS scores. There were positive correlations between the EDS scores and all subscales of PBQ and MIBS scores. Some subscales and indexes of the BSI were correlated with the PBQ, MIBS and EPDS scores.
Conclusion: Identifying postpartum depression and other psychopathologies in mothers is critical for prevention of mother-infant bonding impairment in the early postpartum period.