Validating a widely used tool for perinatal mental health screening
The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) is one of the most widely used screening tools in maternity services across Australia. National guidelines recommend its use to help identify women who may need further support for their mental health during pregnancy and after birth.
A new study led by Professor Megan Galbally from the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health and first author Dr Kelsey Perrykkad provides the largest Australian validation of the EPDS to date. Drawing on data from the Mercy Pregnancy and Emotional Wellbeing Study, the research included nearly 900 women from metropolitan, regional, and rural areas across Victoria and Western Australia.
The team assessed how well the EPDS performed against gold-standard clinical interviews in both the antenatal and postnatal periods. Findings showed the scale had good internal consistency, but only fair accuracy in detecting major depression. Importantly, the study highlighted that while the EPDS remains a valuable screening measure, it should not be used to establish a diagnosis or to estimate prevalence of depression.
Dr Perrykkad said the results show the importance of context when using the scale:
“Our study found the EPDS had poor to fair performance against a diagnostic clinical interview. This means it works as a first step to flag potential concerns, but it cannot stand in for a full clinical assessment.”
Professor Galbally, who is also Director of the Centre for Women’s and Children’s Mental Health at Monash Health and Monash University said the findings reinforce the guidance of the EPDS’s original developer:
“The EPDS was designed for universal screening in maternity care, not as a diagnostic tool. Our research supports continuing to use it in that way — as part of a broader psychosocial assessment, with appropriate follow-up when concerns are raised.”
Published in the Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, this work adds critical Australian data to a field where local validation studies have been limited, and it uniquely considers both pregnancy and the postpartum period.
About Monash University
Monash University is Australia’s largest university with more than 80,000 students. In the 60 years since its foundation, it has developed a reputation for world-leading high-impact research, quality teaching, and inspiring innovation.
With four campuses in Australia and a presence in Malaysia, China, India, Indonesia and Italy, it is one of the most internationalised Australian universities.
As a leading international medical research university with the largest medical faculty in Australia and integration with leading Australian teaching hospitals, we consistently rank in the top 50 universities worldwide for clinical, pre-clinical and health sciences.
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