TY - JOUR
AU - S. Dosanjh
AU - S. Shah
A1 - 
AB - BACKGROUND: Postnatal depression (PND) affects around one in 10 women in the UK within 12 months of giving birth. Despite current management, suicide remains the leading cause of maternal deaths between 6 weeks and 12 months, accounting for 39% of cases. AIM: This systematic review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for managing postnatal depression within a primary care setting. METHOD: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. English-language papers published between 2006 and 2019 that met the inclusion criteria were retrieved. Nine papers were deemed eligible and appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP). The study included four randomised controlled trials and five qualitative studies. RESULTS: The studies evaluated interventions including listening visits, cognitive behavioural approaches (CBA) and person-centred approaches, group therapy, peer support, and health visitor training. No single intervention emerged as the most effective. Listening visits were commonly used but insufficient to manage PND alone. CBA showed improvements, particularly for women with more severe symptoms. Peer support and group therapy were associated with improved outcomes, while health visitor training was effective in delivering psychologically informed approaches to reduce depressive symptomology. CONCLUSION: Integrating non-pharmacological interventions - such as a multimodal treatment approach, peer support, and group therapy programmes in the community, and delivering training packages for health visitors - can effectively manage postnatal depression in primary care and improve current practices.
AD - University of Manchester, Manchester, UK simrun.dosanjh@student.manchester.ac.uk.; Elliott Street Surgery, Wigan, UK.
AN - 42134946
BT - Br J Gen Pract
C5 - Healthcare Disparities
CP - suppl 1
DA - 05/2026
DO - 10.3399/bjgp26X745317
DP - NLM
ET - 20260514
IS - suppl 1
JF - Br J Gen Pract
LA - eng
N2 - BACKGROUND: Postnatal depression (PND) affects around one in 10 women in the UK within 12 months of giving birth. Despite current management, suicide remains the leading cause of maternal deaths between 6 weeks and 12 months, accounting for 39% of cases. AIM: This systematic review aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for managing postnatal depression within a primary care setting. METHOD: A systematic search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. English-language papers published between 2006 and 2019 that met the inclusion criteria were retrieved. Nine papers were deemed eligible and appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP). The study included four randomised controlled trials and five qualitative studies. RESULTS: The studies evaluated interventions including listening visits, cognitive behavioural approaches (CBA) and person-centred approaches, group therapy, peer support, and health visitor training. No single intervention emerged as the most effective. Listening visits were commonly used but insufficient to manage PND alone. CBA showed improvements, particularly for women with more severe symptoms. Peer support and group therapy were associated with improved outcomes, while health visitor training was effective in delivering psychologically informed approaches to reduce depressive symptomology. CONCLUSION: Integrating non-pharmacological interventions - such as a multimodal treatment approach, peer support, and group therapy programmes in the community, and delivering training packages for health visitors - can effectively manage postnatal depression in primary care and improve current practices.
PY - 2026
SN - 0960-1643
ST - What is the effectiveness of primary care interventions in managing postnatal depression in the UK?
T1 - What is the effectiveness of primary care interventions in managing postnatal depression in the UK?
T2 - Br J Gen Pract
TI - What is the effectiveness of primary care interventions in managing postnatal depression in the UK?
U1 - Healthcare Disparities
U3 - 10.3399/bjgp26X745317
VL - 76
VO - 0960-1643
Y1 - 2026
ER -