3289 - TRAJECTORIES OF DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN MOTHERS AND CO-PARENTS ACROSS THE TRANSITION TO PARENTHOOD: A GROWTH MIXTURE MODELING APPROACH

Session: 3269 - PERINATAL MENTAL HEALTH IN MOTHERS AND FATHERS: DEVELOPMENTAL, CLINICAL, AND CROSS-CULTURAL PERSPECTIVES
AUTHORS:
Staudt Andreas (Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden ~ Dresden ~ Germany) , Horsch Antje (Institute of Higher Education and Research in Healthcare, University of Lausanne ~ Lausanne ~ Switzerland) , Asselmann Eva (Faculty of Health, HMU Health and Medical University ~ Potsdam ~ Germany) , Unger Stefanie (Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden ~ Dresden ~ Germany) , Garthus-Niegel Susan (Institute and Policlinic of Occupational and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, TU Dresden ~ Dresden ~ Germany)
Abstract text:
Background. The transition to parenthood is characterised by substantial biological and psychosocial changes that increase parents' susceptibility to mental health difficulties. This study aimed to identify trajectories of parental depressive symptoms and to investigate whether these trajectories, their predictors, and their associations with parental health-related quality of life and child development differ between mothers and co-parents.
Methods. Longitudinal data from the population-based "Dresden Study on Parenting, Work, and Mental Health" (DREAM) cohort were used. In total, 2,131 mothers (57%) and 1,576 co-parents (43%) completed self-report measures during pregnancy and at 8 weeks, 14, 24, and 36 months postpartum. Depressive symptoms were measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale. Growth Mixture Modeling was applied to identify latent symptom trajectories, and potential predictors were tested via multinomial logistic regression.
Results. Four distinct depressive symptom trajectories were identified among mothers and three among co-parents. Most mothers (74%) and co-parents (88%) displayed a "stable-low" course, while 13% of mothers and 9% of co-parents showed rising symptom levels after birth. Shared predictors included lifetime depression, major life events, perceived social support, neuroticism, and negative beliefs about uncontrollability of thoughts. Only mothers (9%) experienced persistently high depressive symptoms, with education and relationship satisfaction emerging as significant predictors. Generally, depressive symptom trajectories were linked to impaired parental health-related quality of life, but no differences in children's development at 36 months were detected.
Conclusions. To our knowledge, this is among the first large cohort studies to directly compare depressive symptom trajectories in mothers and co-parents. While both groups share common longitudinal patterns and risk factors, mothers face unique burdens and vulnerabilities. These findings underscore the need for sustained, context-sensitive perinatal mental health care that addresses individual, relational, and social dimensions.