PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Katherine LeMasters
AU  - Josée Dussault
AU  - Clare Barrington
AU  - Angela Bengtson
AU  - Bradley Gaynes
AU  - Vivian Go
AU  - Mina C. Hosseinipour
AU  - Kazione Kulisewa
AU  - Anna Kutengule
AU  - Samantha Meltzer-Brody
AU  - Dalitso Midiani
AU  - Steve Mphonda
AU  - Michael Udedi
AU  - Brian Pence
TI  - “Pain in my heart”: Understanding perinatal depression among women living with HIV in Malawi
AID  - 10.1101/2020.01.06.895763
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 2020.01.06.895763
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/01/06/2020.01.06.895763.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2020/01/06/2020.01.06.895763.full
AB  - Background Perinatal depression (PND) can interfere with HIV care engagement and outcomes. We examined experiences of PND among women living with HIV (WLWH) in Malawi.Methods We screened 73 WLWH presenting for perinatal care in Lilongwe, Malawi using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). We conducted interviews with 24 women experiencing PND and analyzed data using inductive and deductive coding and narrative analysis.Results Women experienced a double burden of physical and mental illness, expressed as pain in one’s heart. Receiving an HIV diagnosis unexpectedly during antenatal care was a key contributor to developing PND. This development was influenced by stigmatization and social support.Conclusions These findings highlight the need to recognize the mental health implications of routine screening for HIV and to routinely screen and treat PND among WLWH. Culturally appropriate mental health interventions are needed in settings with a high HIV burden.