the effects of motherly on postpartum depression

Conditions: Postpartum Depression

Summary: investigators will be test the efficacy of motherly, a smartphone application (app) to treat depression in women with postpartum depression. the motherly app offers psychoeducation, mood and anxiety monitoring, several well-established psychological techniques (behavioral activation, cognitive restructuring, emotion regulation, stress management techniques, mindfulness and meditation, sleep hygiene), and helps mothers organize their medical appointments and keep track of their childrens' development. the efficacy of the motherly app will be tested in a parallel two-arm randomized controlled trial. participants will be randomly allocated to receive the motherly app (intervention), or comvc (active control), a smartphone app that delivers only psychoeducational content related to general mental health.

the postpartum period is strongly associated with increased risk for depression, with estimates of approximately 19% of women affected by the disorder. psychosocial interventions such as home visiting programs and well-established psychological therapies are efficient to treat this condition but require a significant number of qualified trained professionals. however, financial and human resources to meet these demands are scarce in developing countries such as brazil. therefore, interventions delivered via electronic devices such as smartphones might fill this gap. our objective is to test the efficacy of motherly, a smartphone application (app) to treat depression in women with postpartum depression. the motherly app offers psychoeducation, mood and anxiety monitoring, several well-established psychological techniques (behavioral activation, cognitive restructuring, emotion regulation, stress management techniques, mindfulness and meditation, sleep hygiene), and helps mothers organize their medical appointments and keep track of their childrens' development. the efficacy of the motherly app will be tested in a parallel two-arm randomized controlled trial. two-hundred and sixty-four (n=264) 18-40-years-old women with postpartum depression will be to one of two groups: (1) intervention, which will have access to the motherly app; or (2) active control, which will be given access to comvc, a smartphone app that delivers only psychoeducational content on general mental health (comvc means "with you" in brazilian portuguese). duration of treatment will be four weeks, during which participants in both groups will be assessed at the beginning (baseline; t0), end (post treatment, t1), and 1 month after treatment completion (follow-up, t2).

Eligibility criteria:
inclusion criteria: * women who had given birth to a live baby in the past 12 months; * age between 18-40 years; * edinburgh postnatal depression scale (epds) total score ≥ 10; * depression symptoms present in the past 2 weeks; * being literate; * owing an android or iphone smartphone for personal use. exclusion criteria: * intellectual, visual, or auditory deficiency; * chronic diseases that prevent using smartphones or understanding how to use the apps; * severe and/or chronic mental health diagnosis (schizophrenia or bipolar disorder).

Keywords: postpartum depression smartphone application digital technology maternal depression mental health mental disorder