The strongest evidence for an adverse effect of PMA exposure is in somatic and psychological outcomes ; the evidence for an effect of PMA on child development is inconclusive .
Several decades of research have focused on the impact of exposure to postnatal depression on children , while anxiety has been largely overlooked .
Estimates of the prevalence of postnatal maternal anxiety ( PMA ) range from 3 % to 43 % , suggesting PMA may be an important risk factor for adverse outcomes in children .
This review summarizes what is known about the effects of  PMA exposure on children and makes recommendations for future research .
Diagnosing postpartum depression in mothers and fathers: whatever happened to anxiety?
BACKGROUND Although anxiety disorders are documented in the literature for new mothers ( but less so for fathers ) , rates of postpartum caseness tend to include only those with depression when diagnostic interviews or self-report measures vali date d on such interviews are used . This methodology therefore underestimates the true percentage of women and men who experience significant psychological difficulties postpartum . This has implication s for assessment , treatment and screening for postnatal mood disorders . METHOD Two studies were conducted on a total of 408 women and 356 men expecting their first child . They were recruited antenatally , and interviewed at 6 weeks postpartum using the Diagnostic Interview Schedule . DSM-IV criteria were applied to determine the presence since birth of depression ( major or minor ) , panic disorder , acute adjustment disorder with anxiety ( meeting the criteria for generalised anxiety disorder except for the duration criterion ) , and phobia . RESULTS The inclusion of diagnostic assessment for panic disorder and acute adjustment disorder with anxiety increased the rates of caseness by between 57 and 100 % for mothers , and 31 - 130 % for fathers , over the rates for major or minor depression . Inclusion of assessment for phobia further increased the rates of disorder in both sample s. Couple concordance rates were between 6.6 and 11.1 % , with no significant difference between rates for depressive or depressive and anxious caseness . For women , a previous history of an anxiety disorder appears to be a greater risk factor for a postnatal mood disorder ( i.e. depression or anxiety ) than a history of a depressive disorder . CONCLUSIONS These results clearly show the need to assess for both depression and anxiety  in new and expectant parents , and we believe the term ' postnatal mood disorder ' ( PMD ) , rather than postnatal depression , more accurately reflects significant adjustment difficulties in new parents
The strongest evidence for an adverse effect of PMA exposure is in somatic and psychological outcomes ; the evidence for an effect of PMA on child development is inconclusive .
Several decades of research have focused on the impact of exposure to postnatal depression on children , while anxiety has been largely overlooked .
Estimates of the prevalence of postnatal maternal anxiety ( PMA ) range from 3 % to 43 % , suggesting PMA may be an important risk factor for adverse outcomes in children .
This review summarizes what is known about the effects of  PMA exposure on children and makes recommendations for future research .