The rate of postpartum depression cases per 1,000 expectant mothers has surged by over 50 percent. (Image courtesy of Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Oct. 26 (Korea Bizwire) – Despite a decrease in the number of expectant mothers, the rate of postpartum depression cases per 1,000 expectant mothers has surged by over 50 percent.
According to data from the National Health Insurance Service released on Wednesday, the number of postpartum depression patients diagnosed within one year of giving birth reached 31.9 per 1,000 expectant mothers last year, marking a 54.9 percent increase from the 20.6 cases reported in 2018.
During this period, the number of expectant mothers decreased by 24 percent, from 322,252 to 244,793, while the number of postpartum depression patients increased by 17.6 percent, rising from 6,649 to 7,819.
When examining postpartum depression patients by age over the past five years, those younger than 19 represented the largest group at 63.8 individuals per 1,000 expectant mothers. The number of postpartum depression patients below 19 years of age per 1,000 expectant mothers surged by 92.6 percent to 107.3 last year, up from 55.7 in 2018.
Following this group were those in their 20s, at 33.2 individuals per 1,000 expectant mothers, those in their 40s, at 27.5, and those in their 30s, at 23.7 individuals.
With the exception of those in their 40s and 50s, all other age groups exhibited a growth rate of more than 50 percent in terms of the number of postpartum depression patients per 1,000 expectant mothers over the past five years.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
