Database Information

Below is additional detail on the Perinatal Mental Health Systematic Review database that’s been developed so that those interrogating the data can understand the underlying information.

  • Specifically:

    • Interventions for prevention and treatment of mental health problems in the perinatal period (including any intervention, both antenatal and postnatal period, and could target either/both parents)

    • Barriers and facilitators to care in this population (including service provision, cost, experiences, acceptability, etc)

    Initial findings, from MEDLINE only: 2,563 SRs

    De-duplication and additional criteria (detailed below) = 2,108

    1. Prevention and Treatment

    2. Descriptions/Evaluations of Service Design/Organisation

    3. Barriers, Facilitators, and Experiences

    4. Generalisability of Evidence

    5. Measurement

    6. Aetiology, Incidence, and Prevalence

    7. Impact on Offspring Outcomes

    1. Intervention (Prevention or Treatment)

    2. Service Delivery and Organisation Initiatives

    3. User Experience/Acceptability of Care

  • Four different "Inclusion Criteria" were set:

    1. Types of Study

      1. Systematic Reviews

      2. Clear and unambiguous eligibility criteria, detail of studies included, etc.

      3. English language

      4. No restrictions on date or study design

    2. Types of Problem and Population

      1. All Perinatal Mental Health problems

      2. During pregnancy or up to 1 year post birth

      3. Mothers, fathers, and other care givers

    3. Types of Concept

      1. Any type of prevention or treatment, or service intervention

      2. Any evaluation of user experience

    4. Types of Context

      1. Any geographic location or any setting

  • SRs were excluded based on the following criteria, but coded so could be easily identified for later synthesis where required.

    1. General

      1. E.g. anxiety-focused birth interventions, PMH post pregnancy termination or stillbirth

    2. Aetiology and Incidence/Prevalence

      1. SRs done on aetiology, incidence and prevalence of perinatal mental health problems

    3. Validity/Reliability

      1. Reviews of validity and reliability of measurement tools to assess perinatal mental health problems (unless relevant to service provision/use)

    4. Offspring

      1. Reviews relating to offspring outcomes relating to perinatal mental health problems, inclusive of parent-infant bonding

    5. Umbrella Review

      1. Overviews of reviews/“umbrella reviews of perinatal mental health questions

    6. Duplicate Studies

    Further information on inclusion and exclusion criteria can be provided.

  • The SRs were finally categorised according to the following "Review Parameters" with assigned "Study Characteristics".

    1. Review Parameters

      1. Population Studied

        1. Mothers

        2. Fathers/Partners

        3. Both Mothers and Partners

      2. Mental Health Condition

        1. Anxiety

        2. Depression

        3. OCD

        4. PTSD

        5. Eating Disorder

        6. Psychosis

        7. Other

        8. Not Applicable

      3. Perinatal Period

        1. Prenatal

        2. Postnatal

        3. Perinatal

      4. Intervention Type

        1. Psychological / Psychoeducational / Psychosocial

        2. Pharmacological

        3. Physical (e.g. exercise)

        4. Medical

        5. Screening

        6. Dietary

        7. Complementary/Non-Conventional

        8. Other

        9. Not Applicable

      5. Continent of Interest

        1. Africa

        2. Asia

        3. Europe

        4. North America

        5. Oceania

        6. South America

        7. Not Reported

        8. Not Applicable

    2. Included Study Characteristics

      1. Number (size of review)

      2. 0-1 Studies

      3. 2-5 Studies

      4. 6-10 Studies

      5. 11+ Studies

    3. Study Types

      1. Controlled Clinical Trials (including RCTs)

      2. Observational Studies

      3. Qualitative Studies (including mixed-methods)

      4. Pilot Studies

      5. Other

      6. Not Reported

      7. Not Applicable

    4. Country in which Study Undertaken