Child-related factors associated with depressive symptoms among mothers in urban Bangladesh: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract Background:International evidence suggest that several child-related health outcomes and mother-children bondingare associated with depression among mothers. However, no studies documented this among Bangladeshi mothers. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the child-related factors associated with depression among mothers in urban Bangladesh.Methods:This cross-sectional studywas conducted among mothers of school-going children from Dhaka City of Bangladesh duringJune andDecember 2019. A multistage sampling technique was adopted and atotal of 324 mothers of school-going children (class V-VIII) from 12 schools of Dhaka City Corporation was selected. The inclusion criteria includedthe mothers of the children studying in the same school for at least six months. Depression was measured using a 20-item Self-Rating Depression Scale weighted to 100 percent, with 25-49 categorized as no depression and 50-59 as having depression.A binary logistic regression model was executedto identify the child-related factors associated with depression among mothers.Results:More than half of the participants (54.3%) were aged ≥40 yearsandhad up to HSC level education (52.5%).Most of them were homemakers (67.0%)and mothers of a girl child(53.1%). In addition, 82.1% of the participants lived in a nuclear family, and 52.8% of the participantshad a family income of ≥50,000 BDT. Adjusted analyses revealedthat mother’s depression was associated with child’s frequent complaint of headaches or stomachaches(aOR=13.19, 95% CI 3.03-57.37), having an injury (aOR=4.05, 95% CI 1.44-11.41), and unfriendly relationship with mothers(aOR=21.46, 95% CI 5.04-91.28).Conclusion:Findings of the present study identified severalchild-related factors such as sickness, injury, and unfriendly relationships with mothers are associated with depression among mothers of school-going children.Policymakers and public health practitioners should address the child-related factors linked to mother's depression as part of the management of overall depression among mothers in urban Bangladesh.