A DEPRESSÃO PÓS-PARTO EM ADOLESCENTES COMO UM PROBLEMA DE SAÚDE PÚBLICA: UMA REVISÃO DE LITERATURA

ABSTRACT: Teenage mothers have to deal with the challenges of developmental tasks typical of adolescence, but also with the stressors associated with pregnancy and motherhood. Thus, some stressors are experienced with greater intensity and can result in greater psychological distress for teenage mothers (PACHECO, 2003). The prevalence of postpartum depression (PPD) is, on average, 10% to 15%, with important cultural variations in risk factors. Recent studies indicate rates of 3.6% in Germany to 34.7% in South Africa. (FONSECA, 2010) In Brazil, a prevalence of 12% was found in Rio de Janeiro, 13.4% in Brasília, 20.7% in Porto Alegre, 26.9% in Belo Horizonte and 7.2% in Recife (FIGUEIRA, 2010). METHODOLOGY: The method used for research was the literature review, in the following databases: MEDLINE (Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online) and LILACS (Latin American Caribbean Literature in Health Sciences), with the following descriptors: Postpartum depression, Adolescent pregnancy, women’s health, medicine. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: For better clarification, guiding questions were answered in light of the scientific literature that corroborated the affirmation of postpartum depression in adolescence as a public health problem. CONCLUSION: The relevance of the topic of postpartum depression in adolescence is evident, since this population is still completing its physical and psychological growth and development, being exposed to the difficult task of gestation, and it is essential to carry out further studies on this topic to improve the quality of care provided to women in their different stages of development. KEYWORDS: Postpartum depression; Adolescent pregnancy; Women’s health; Medicine.