Inconsolable infants linked to maternal depression.(Obstetrics)

SAN DIEGO -- Results from the first population-based study of its kind have found that about one in three mothers of inconsolable, crying infants reported having postpartum depressive symptoms, Pamela C. High, M.D., said at the annual meeting of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

Dr. High and her associates analyzed data from Rhode Island's Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) that was weighted to represent all births that occurred in the state in 2002 and 2003. Sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PRAMS is an ongoing state-specific population-based survey that identifies and monitors selected maternal behaviors and experiences before, during, and after pregnancy. Rhode Island is one of 32 states that has the system.

The investigators mailed a survey to 4,214 mothers that included a question about their infants' consolability as well as a question about maternal depressive symptoms, said Dr. High, director of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at Rhode Island Hospital/Hasbro Children's Hospital, Providence.

Of the 4,214 mothers, 2,947 returned questionnaires, for a response rate of 70%.

Nearly 10% of respondents were in their teens, almost half in their 20s and an additional 27% were aged 30-34 years. The majority of them (87%) were white, while 8% were black. The rest were of Hispanic, Asian, or American Indian background.

The mean infant age was 16 weeks and nearly half were males.

Overall, mothers identified 8.3% of the infants as being "somewhat difficult" or "very difficult" to console. Infants who weighed less than 2,500 g at birth were reported to be more difficult to console compared with heavier newborns (11.2% vs. 8.1%, respectively).