Measuring Peripartum Depression Symptoms in Latina and Black Women.

项目总结

PROJECT SUMMARY Within the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health (CCCEH) Environmental influences on Children’s Health Outcmes (ECHO) award (UG3/UH30D023290), we follow three longitudinal pregnancy cohorts comprised primarily of Black and Latina mothers and their children, who were recruited during pregnancy beginning in 1998. At the time of pregnancy, all women reside in/around New York City (NYC) and represent an urban, minority population that is typically under-represented in scientific research. The research program in our birth cohorts aims to study the impacts of prenatal chemical and social exposures on children’s health outcomes. In this administrative supplement which aims to promote diversity within the ECHO consortium workforce, Ms. Amarelis Raudales is our candidate. She is a predoctoral student in clinical psychology and her clinical coursework at the City College of New York (CCNY) will be complemented by practical research experience within the CCCEH ECHO cohorts. The goal of her project is to understand how to better assess peripartum depression (periPD) in ethnic and minority women. PeriPD is characterized by a major depressive episode during the prenatal period or within four weeks. Depressive symptoms may continue and studies often extend up to one-year postpartum and has been shown to adversely affect children’s health. Latina and Black women are at especially high risk for PeriPD and screening measures for PeriPD are sensitive to the unique experiences of Latina and Black women. Better screening measures are needed for early detection, diagnosis, and treatment. This information will benefit our cohort and the ECHO community, as the ECHO wide cohort aims to include representation from multicultural populations.