Incidence of Postpartum Psychosis in a Rural Private Medical College of West Bengal in Eastern India

Background: Postpartum psychosis is a severe form of postpartum psychiatry and is a life-threatening complication of childbirth, which may manifest either through suicide attempts or infanticide, if left undiagnosed and untreated. There is a scarcity of information on its incidence in rural India, and hence on its magnitude. To estimate the incidence of postpartum psychosis and associated risk factors among the women giving birth in the rural private medical college in Eastern India at the time of the research. As can be seen from the above objective formulated for the proposed research. Material and Methods: Cross-sectional observational study was carried out in 100 postpartum patients in the obstetrics ward of Gouri Devi Institute of Medical Sciences, with screening for psychotic symptoms carried out in hospital and at follow-up at six weeks postpartum using clinical psychiatric interview, which included assessment for psychotic symptoms of psychosis, such as hallucinations, delusions, disorganised behaviour, ideas of suicide, and harm to infant, with sociodemographic, obstetrics, and psychosocial details. Results: The rate of postpartum psychosis was 4%, with four confirmed cases. The significantly associated group was those ≥30 years, multiparous, and having a cesarean section. Social support deficits (75% of psychosis cases), financial problems (50%), and prior psychiatric illnesses (50%) were identified as significant risk factors. The most prominent symptoms were hallucinations (75% and 50% for delusions). Three infants of affected mothers were admitted to the NICU. Conclusion: Despite low incidence rates, postpartum psychosis still forms an important part of maternal psychiatric complications in rural India. Screening of new mothers' psychiatric cases, especially when they experience psychosocial factors, should be done to intervene early. Keywords: Postpartum psychosis, rural women, maternal mental health, obstetric risk factors, West Bengal, India.