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A Comparison of Self-Rated and Female Partner-Rated Scales in the Assessment of Paternal Prenatal Depression

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Abstract

Maternal depression has been widely studied but paternal depression is often overlooked. Depression in men is generally more difficult to detect as the symptoms are not apparent. Furthermore, Japanese couples tend to suppress their real emotions to avoid confrontation. We aimed to investigate the reliability and validity of the K6, K10 and PHQ-9 in assessing the mental health status of men when used by their pregnant partners, as well as the prevalence of paternal prenatal depression in a Japanese study sample. A total of 136 couples participated in this study. The prevalence of paternal prenatal depression reported by the men themselves was higher compared to that reported by their female partners (K6, 10.3 %; K10, 6.6 %; PHQ-9, 3.7 % vs. K6-FP, 2.2 %; K10-FP, 1.5 %; PHQ-9-FP, 0 %, respectively). Mental health issues in men may not be accurately rated by their female partners, suggesting the importance of self-rating and direct consultation.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the participants of the study. The authors also thank Kiwako Yamamoto M.D. for her advice on the interpretation of results and Yoshiko Kato, Mika Sasaki and Tomoko Miyazaki, for assistance with instrumentation. This study was supported by a Grant for Japan Environment & Children’s Study from the Ministry of the Environment.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychosocial Medicine, National Center for Child Health and Development, 2-10-1 Okura, Setagaya, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan

    Mizuho Konishi & Yoshiyuki Tachibana

  2. Medical Support Center for Japan Environment and Children’s Study, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Mizuho Konishi, Yoshiyuki Tachibana, Keiji Hashimoto, Hiroshi Kitazawa, Hirohisa Saito & Yukihiro Ohya

  3. Department of Education for Clinical Research, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Julian Tang

  4. Department of Health Policy, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Kenji Takehara

  5. Shirota Obstetrical and Gynecological Hospital, Kanagawa, Japan

    Takahiko Kubo

  6. Division of Rehabilitation Medicine and Developmental Evaluation Center, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Keiji Hashimoto

  7. Department of General Pediatrics, Miyagi Children’s Hospital, Miyagi, Japan

    Hiroshi Kitazawa

  8. Department of Allergy and Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Hirohisa Saito

  9. Department of Medical Subspecialties, National Center for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, Japan

    Yukihiro Ohya

Authors
  1. Mizuho Konishi
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  2. Yoshiyuki Tachibana
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  3. Julian Tang
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  7. Hiroshi Kitazawa
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  9. Yukihiro Ohya
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Correspondence to Mizuho Konishi.

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The authors confirm that there are no known conflicts of interest associated with this study.

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The findings and conclusions of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not represent the official views of the Japan Ministry of the Environment.

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Konishi, M., Tachibana, Y., Tang, J. et al. A Comparison of Self-Rated and Female Partner-Rated Scales in the Assessment of Paternal Prenatal Depression. Community Ment Health J 52, 983–988 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-015-9931-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-015-9931-z

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