Introduction:

postpartum depression is the most frequent peripartum psychiatric complication, it constitutes a public health problem due to short and long-term consequences for mother and child. It is considered that the preventive approach has great potential to reduce its incidence, as well as the evaluation of efficacy in interventions, according to the targeted population group, contributes to determining specific therapies and reducing health costs.

Objective:

evaluate and compare the efficacy of non-pharmacological interventions for the prevention of postpartum depression in pregnant women with risk factors compared to pregnant women in the general maternal population.

Methods:

a systematic research was carried out in the MEDLINE, SCOPUS, CINAHL, EMBASE and LILACS databases, through which 484 articles limited to English and Spanish languages were identified, to finally include, according to eligibility criteria and methodological quality, a total of 13 controlled clinical trials, covering a sample of 5,905 patients.

Results:

six of the seven studies of women with risk factors had a favorable impact on both the decrease in symptoms and the score on the measurement scales over time. In contrast, only two of the six studies in the general population had a significant impact. The most important limitation was the heterogeneity of the proposed interventions.

Conclusions:

findings suggest that non-pharmacological preventive interventions are more effective in preventing depression when approached in women with risk factors and in the postpartum period. MÉD.UIS.2021;34(1): 73-90.

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