Exploring the impact of chronic medical conditions on maternal mental health: A National Inpatient Sample analysis

Background: Pregnancy and postpartum period are associated with stress and pain. Chronic medical conditions can aggravate depressive and psychotic mental illnesses in the peripartum period. Aim: The study aimed to investigate the association between different chronic medical conditions and mental illnesses during pregnancy and the postpartum period using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS). Methods: Pregnant women or women in the postpartum period were retrieved from the NIS 2016–2019 database using the International Classification of Diseases (ICD)-10 and set as our targeted population. Postpartum depression, puerperal psychosis, and mental illnesses related to pregnancy were also retrieved as our outcomes of interest. STATA 15 was used to analyze the data and investigate the relationship between chronic medical conditions and pregnancy-related mental illnesses. Results: 2,854,149 admissions were retrieved from the database with a mean age of 29 ± 6 years old. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed a significant association between chronic medical conditions and postpartum depression, puerperal psychosis, and other mental illnesses. On univariate analysis, heart failure (odds ratio [OR] = 13.9; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.5–55.88; P < 0.001), alcohol misuse (OR = 5.3; 95% CI = 1.7–16.4; P = 0.004), and migraine (OR = 3.9; 95% CI = 2.8–5.3; P < 0.001) showed high association with postpartum depression. Epilepsy (OR = 54.37; 95% CI = 7.4–399.34; P < 0.001), systemic lupus erythematosus (OR = 24.66; 95% CI = 3.36–181.1; P = 0.002), and heart diseases (OR = 15.26; 95% CI = 3.6–64.5; P < 0.001) showed the highest association with puerperium psychosis. Alcohol misuse (OR = 8.21; 95% CI = 7.4–9.12; P < 0.001), osteoarthritis (OR = 6.02; 95% CI = 5.41–6.70; P < 0.001), and migraine (OR = 5.71; 95% CI = 5.56–5.86; P < 0.001) showed the highest association with other mental illnesses during pregnancy and the postpartum period. Conclusion: Heart diseases, alcohol misuse, migraine, systemic lupus erythematosus, and epilepsy were the most important chronic medical conditions associated with mental diseases during pregnancy and the postpartum period. This investigation recommends integrating management of chronic diseases and mental health care together. Specifically, screening for mental illnesses should be a routine part of care for patients with chronic medical conditions, especially during pregnancy and early postpartum. By identifying and addressing mental health issues early on, healthcare providers can improve the overall health and well-being of these patients, ultimately leading to better maternal and fetal outcomes.