Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

Used to screen for depressive symptoms in pregnant and postpartum patients to identify those needing further clinical assessment. Applies in routine perinatal visits, primary care, and postpartum follow‑up. Clinically useful for detecting major depression risk with good sensitivity/specificity, monitoring symptom severity over time, and triggering timely referral or treatment.

Screening detects depressive symptoms well with cutoffs around ≥11 balancing sensitivity (~0.81) and specificity (~0.88) in large IPD meta-analysis 1 [Level I evidence]. ≥13 increases specificity but misses more cases. Accuracy varies across populations and small studies may distort optimal thresholds 2 [Level II evidence]. Positive screens require diagnostic follow‑up; scale cannot distinguish bipolar disorder, and suicidal ideation must be urgently assessed 3 [Level II evidence].