AccScience Publishing / HPR / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/HPR026080045
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RESEARCH ARTICLE

Effects of family factors on the risk of maternal and paternal depressive symptoms during perinatal period: A pairwise analysis

Yao Cheng1 ,  Min He1 ,  Wenting Huang2 ,  Guoqiang Sun1 ,  Man Luo1* ,  Yun Zhao1*
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1 Obstetrics Department, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Wuhan, Hubei, China
2 Science and Education Department, Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Wuhan, Hubei, China
HPR, 026080045 https://doi.org/10.36922/HPR026080045
Received: 20 February 2026 | Revised: 30 July 2026 | Accepted: 3 August 2026 | Published online: 17 August 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution -Noncommercial 4.0 International License (CC-by the license) ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ )
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Abstract

Background: Childbirth is a major transition for both parents. However, few studies have examined the pairwise role of family function in both parents simultaneously.

Objective: This study aimed to explore the interconnected effects of family function on maternal perinatal depressive symptoms (MPDS) and paternal perinatal depressive symptoms (PPDS) from the perspectives of both parents.

Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted in a large tertiary hospital. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) was applied for MPDS and PPDS screening, and the APGAR scale was adopted to evaluate family function. The actor and partner effects of maternal and paternal family function on the risk of MPDS and PPDS were examined using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM). Multivariate logistic regression was additionally performed to explore the associations between family function and parental perinatal depressive symptoms.

Results: In total, 715 couples were included in this study, and the prevalence of MPDS and PPDS were 24.90% and 14.55%, respectively. Significant actor effects were observed for both mothers (β = 0.11, p = 0.03) and fathers (β = 0.19, p < 0.001), and partner effects of maternal family function significantly predicted PPDS (β = 0.10, p = 0.048). Elevated risk of parental perinatal depressive symptoms was associated with poor or fair maternal family function (OR = 2.41, 95% CI: 1.16–4.99) and paternal family function (OR = 2.59, 95% CI: 1.41–4.77).

Conclusion: The high prevalence rates of MPDS and PPDS underscore the importance of parental depressive symptoms screening. Intervention strategies targeted at family function should be adopted for the management of MPDS and PPDS.

Keywords
Maternal perinatal depressive symptoms
Paternal perinatal depressive symptoms
Family function
Pairwise analysis
Funding
This study was funded by The Scientific Research Project of the Health Management Innovative Talent Cultivation Initiative of the Hubei Provincial Preventive Medicine Association (grant no. 2025SWGKY226) and Hubei Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (grant no. 2025AFD690). The funders had no role in data collection, analysis, manuscript writing, or the decision to submit of this manuscript.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
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