Prenatal and postpartum depression diagnosis in a large health system: prevalence and disparities.

Depression symptoms and diagnoses differ by maternal characteristics during pregnancy with some groups at substantially higher risk. Efforts to examine disparities in screening and diagnosis are needed to identify reasons for variability in prenatal depression diagnosis between Black and White women.Key messagesWomen who were young, single, have public insurance, and women who identify as multiracial or non-Hispanic (NH) Native American were most likely to have a positive depression screen or a diagnosis for depression.After adjustment for confounders, NH Black women with a positive depression screen were about half as likely to have a diagnosis of depression during pregnancy as NH White women.Awareness of the differing prevalence of depression risk screening results, diagnoses and potential for variation in diagnosis may identify opportunities to improve equity in the delivery of essential mental health care to all patients.