Arch Gynecol Obstet (2012) 285:1249–1255 DOI 10.1007/s00404-011-2165-6 123 MATERNAL-FETAL MEDICINE Screening for postpartum depression using Kurdish version of Edinburgh postnatal depression scale Hamdia Mirkhan Ahmed · Shahla Kareem Alalaf · Namir Ghanim Al-Tawil Received: 11 March 2011 / Accepted: 23 November 2011 / Published online: 8 December 2011  Springer-Verlag 2011 Abstract Background One of the important public health problems aVecting maternal and child health is postpartum depres- sion (PPD). It generally occurs within 6–8 weeks after childbirth. Objectives To determine the prevalence of postpartum depression (PPD) using a Kurdish version of Edinburgh postpartum depression scale (EPDS) and to analyze the risk factors for postpartum depression in a population of puer- peral Kurdish women in Erbil city. Patients and methods A cross-sectional study was con- ducted between 20th of June and 30th of November 2010, in 14 antenatal care units of primary health centers, in Erbil city, Kurdistan region, Iraq. The sample of the study included 1,000 puerperal women (6–8 weeks postpartum), ranging in age from 14 to 48 years. Data were collected after interviewing the women using a questionnaire designed by the researchers, and the Kurdish version of the EPDS. Chi square test of association and the logistic regression tests were used in the analysis. Results The prevalence of postpartum depression was 28.4%. Logistic regression analysis showed that the factors found to be associated with PPD were: physical or sexual abuse, delivery by cesarean section, history of past psychi- atric illness, and family history of past psychiatric illness; while marriage with no previous agreement, and high socio-economic level were associated with lower levels of PPD. Conclusion The Kurdish version of the EPDS can be suc- cessfully used to screen depression in a Kurdish population of puerperal women. Keywords Depression · Postpartum depression · Edinburgh postnatal depression scale · Screening Introduction Postpartum depression (also called postnatal depression, PND) is a clinical term referring to a major depressive epi- sode that is temporally associated with childbirth [1], its prevalence varies between 3.5 and 40% depending on the deWnition, evaluation criteria, and geographic area [2]. Pre- vious qualitative studies have depicted the feelings and experiences of mothers with postpartum depression [3]: loneliness, obsessive thinking, anxiety attacks, loss of con- trol, guilt, insecurities, diminished concentration, fear that life would never be normal again, lack of positive emo- tions, loss of interests in hobbies or goals, and fear of con- templation of harming themselves and their infants. From an empirical perspective, mothers’ descriptions of postpar- tum depression also include an element of loss, such as loss of control or loss of former identity [4]. The onset of PPD is usually seen after the fourth week after birth but it may appear up to the end of the Wrst year H. M. Ahmed (&) Maternity Nursing Unit, Hawler Medical University, College of Nursing, Kurdistan Region, Erbil, Iraq e-mail: hamdia76@gmail.com S. K. Alalaf Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hawler Medical University, College of Medicine, Kurdistan Region, Erbil, Iraq e-mail: shahla_alaf@yahoo.com N. G. Al-Tawil Department of Community Medicine, Hawler Medical University, College of Medicine, Kurdistan Region, Erbil, Iraq e-mail: namiraltawil@gmail.com