Determinants of depression and HIV-related worry among HIV-positive women who have recently given birth, Bangkok, Thailand Anna Bennetts a, *, Nathan Shaer a,b , Chomnad Manopaiboon a , Pattrawan Chaiyakul c , Wimol Siriwasin d , Philip Mock a,b , Kunyarat Klumthanom a , Sumaleelak Sorapipatana a , Chanidapa Yuvasevee a , Sujira Jalanchavanapate a , Leslie Clark e a The HIV/AIDS Collaboration, Ministry of Public Health, DMS 6 Building, Tivanon Rd, Nonthaburi, 11000, Thailand b Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA c Siriraj Hospital Faculty of Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand d Rajavithi Hospital, Department of Medical Services, Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), Bangkok, Thailand e University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL, USA Abstract HIV-infected pregnant women have been the focus of considerable research related to biomedical issues of mother-to-child transmission worldwide. However, there have been few reports on the psychological well-being of new mothers with HIV, either in developed or developing countries. As part of a perinatal HIV transmission and family impact study in Bangkok, predictors of psychological scales were evaluated from interview data (N=129) collected 18±24 months postpartum. Standardised questionnaires were used to assess depressive symptoms and HIV- related worry. Depressive symptomatology and HIV-related worry were common amongst these women. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identi®ed several factors that predicted these psychological outcomes. High depression scores were associated with women who were no longer in a relationship with their partner (odds ratio (OR) 5.72, con®dence interval (CI) 2.18±14.97) and who used venting coping strategies (OR 2.15, CI 1.44±3.21). Higher levels of HIV-related worry were associated with women whose babies were HIV-infected (OR 3.51, CI 1.28±10.69), who had not disclosed their HIV status to others (OR 3.05, CI 1.29±7.24) and who reported that their HIV-infection was something about which their family would be ashamed (OR 3.44, CI 1.34±9.77). Based on the current ®ndings, intervention strategies we propose are psychological interventions which address disclosure issues, feelings of shame and coping strategies as well as ®nancial assistance for single mothers. Interventions that require few resources such as group counselling or support merit special consideration. # 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: HIV; Pregnancy; Depression; Psychological adaptation Social Science & Medicine 49 (1999) 737±749 0277-9536/99/$ - see front matter # 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S0277-9536(99)00108-2 www.elsevier.com/locate/socscimed * Corresponding author. Fax: +66-2-591-5443. E-mail address: agb9@cdc.gov (A. Bennetts)