the relationship between sleep quality, depression, and anxiety in pregnant women: a cohort study

Background and objective: sleep disturbances are common in women, especially during pregnancy. this can re-sult in emotional and psychological consequences in pregnant women. the aim of this study was to assess the preva-lence and identify the relationship between sleep quality, anxiety, and depression during pregnancy. materials & methods: this cohort study included 283 pregnant women. participants completed beck depression inventory, state-trait anxiety inventory, and pittsburgh sleep quality index at first, second, and third gestational tri-mesters. data were analyzed by descriptive statistics and cramer’s v correlation technique.results: the findings indicated that nearly 30% of participants suffered from depression. mild depression reported from the first, second, and third trimesters was 18%, 11%, and 4.9%, respectively, while severe depression frequency was found to be 4.9% in the third trimester. moreover, the highest proportion of mild anxiety was 28.3% in the first trimester, and moderate and severe anxiety had a prevalence of 4.9 and 14.1% in the third trimester, respectively. in the third trimester, sleep quality was lower and the prevalence of sleep problems was 75.26%. the findings also showed that there is a significant association between sleep problems and depression and anxiety (p < 0.0500).conclusion: psychological problems such as anxiety and depression were prevalent among the studied population of pregnant women. thus, psychological counseling before pregnancy or early pregnancy in this population may pro-vide safer pregnancy, convenient delivery, and healthier newborns.