The impact of pre-pregnancy BMI on maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms during pregnancy and the postpartum period: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Studies have reported conflicting results on the association between maternal pre-pregnancy weight and adverse mental health outcomes during pregnancy and the postpartum period. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to provide the current state of evidence concerning the association between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and the risk of antenatal and postnatal depressive and anxiety symptoms.

Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, Web of Science and Scopus databases were searched from their inception through August 31, 2020. Observational studies assessing the association between maternal pre-pregnancy BMI and risk of depression and/anxiety during pregnancy and the postpartum period were included. We used random-and quality-effects meta-analyses to estimate risks. Subgroup, sensitivity and meta-regression analyses were performed.

Results: Pre-pregnancy obesity was associated with a 33% increased risk of antenatal depressive symptoms (pooled OR = 1.33 [95% CI; 1.20-1.48]). The pooled ORs for the association between underweight, overweight and obesity and postnatal depressive symptoms were 1.71 [95% CI; 1.27 - 2.31], 1.14 [95% CI; 1.0 - 1.30] and 1.39 [95% CI; 1.23 - 1.57], respectively. Low to moderate level of between-study heterogeneity was noted. The association between pre-pregnancy BMI and perinatal anxiety symptoms remain uncertain.

Conclusions: Pre-pregnancy obesity was associated with an increased risk of maternal depressive symptoms both in pregnancy and the postpartum period. The findings suggest that women with both high and low pre-pregnancy weight may benefit from receiving mental health screening and interventions during prenatal care.

Keywords: Anxiety; depression; meta-analysis; obesity; overweight; pre-pregnancy weight.