Postpartum health includes much more than the first clinical checkup after birth. Available statistics cover depression symptoms, substance use, maternal deaths, hemorrhage, contraception, breastfeeding, and access to follow-up care. The figures below identify the population, geography, and measurement period for each result so that estimates from different studies are not treated as directly interchangeable.
Contents
- Postpartum mental-health statistics
- Who reports more depressive symptoms
- Postpartum care and substance-use measures
- Maternal safety and postpartum hemorrhage
- Family planning after birth
- Breastfeeding after delivery
Postpartum mental-health statistics
The CDC’s 2018 Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) analysis covered women with a recent live birth across 31 sites. It found postpartum depressive symptoms in 13.2% of women. Site results varied substantially, from 9.7% in Illinois to 23.5% in Mississippi. The same analysis reported 14.8% in Alaska, 11.1% in Colorado, 11.7% in Connecticut, 13.1% in Delaware, and 13.6% in Georgia. These are reported prevalence estimates from the CDC’s 2020 MMWR report, not a current national estimate.
Additional site estimates in that report were 14.7% in Kansas, 14.0% in Kentucky, 15.9% in Louisiana, 10.9% in Maine, 10.3% in Massachusetts, 16.4% in Michigan, 10.6% in Minnesota, and 13.7% in Missouri. The report also recorded 12.1% in Nebraska, 11.2% in New Jersey, 15.3% in New Mexico, 15.5% in New York City, 11.7% in North Dakota, 14.7% in Pennsylvania, and 10.8% in Puerto Rico.
A later CDC PRAMS follow-up measured symptoms at two postpartum periods. In the 2019 follow-up study, 11.9% of women reported symptoms at 2 to 6 months postpartum, while 7.2% reported symptoms at 9 to 10 months. A total of 3.1% reported symptoms at both time periods. Among women who reported symptoms at 9 to 10 months, 57.4% had not reported symptoms at 2 to 6 months. This timing difference shows why a single postpartum screening point may not capture every woman who later reports symptoms.
The follow-up study also reported that 24.8% of participants had prior depression. Among women with symptoms at both postpartum time points, 68.5% had prior depression. In its adjusted findings, postpartum depressive symptoms at 9 to 10 months were associated with prevalence ratios of 2.34 for Medicaid insurance postpartum, 4.03 for prior depression, 3.58 for current postpartum anxiety, 2.67 for postpartum smoking, and 3.35 for postpartum marijuana or cannabidiol use. More than 12 years of education was associated with a lower prevalence ratio of 0.51. A prevalence ratio describes the relationship observed in that study; it is not a guarantee that any individual will develop symptoms.
Who reports more depressive symptoms
The 2018 CDC PRAMS mental-health report showed differences by age, race and ethnicity, insurance, and pregnancy history. Women age 19 or younger had a reported prevalence of 22.2%, compared with 17.8% among women ages 20 to 24, 11.9% among women ages 25 to 34, and 10.8% among women age 35 or older.
| Group measured in the 2018 CDC PRAMS analysis | Postpartum depressive symptoms |
|---|---|
| Age 19 or younger | 22.2% |
| Ages 20–24 | 17.8% |
| Ages 25–34 | 11.9% |
| Age 35 or older | 10.8% |
| Non-Hispanic Black women | 18.2% |
| Non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native women | 22.0% |
| Non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander women | 19.2% |
| Medicaid at delivery | 17.2% |
| Private insurance at delivery | 10.1% |
The report found 18.2% among non-Hispanic Black women, 22.0% among non-Hispanic American Indian/Alaska Native women, and 19.2% among non-Hispanic Asian/Pacific Islander women. Women with Medicaid at delivery had a prevalence of 17.2%, while women with private insurance had a prevalence of 10.1%.
Reported history during pregnancy was also associated with different levels. Women who smoked cigarettes during the last three months of pregnancy had a prevalence of 22.3%. The prevalence was 28.7% among women with self-reported depression before pregnancy and 34.3% among women with self-reported depression during pregnancy. These figures describe groups in the CDC analysis and should not be used to predict an individual parent’s experience.
Postpartum care and substance-use measures
In the CDC 2018 PRAMS analysis, 90.1% of women attended a postpartum visit. Among those who attended, 87.4% were asked about depression during the visit. Provider inquiry varied by location, from 50.7% in Puerto Rico to 96.2% in Vermont. The difference concerns whether depression was discussed during the visit, not whether a patient had depression.
A separate CDC 2004 postpartum care visit report found an overall postpartum care visit prevalence of 88.7%, with results ranging from 84.0% to 93.9% across areas. A later CDC summary described 88% of women ages 18 to 44 with a recent live birth as receiving a postpartum checkup. That summary reported 84% among younger women and 80% among Hispanic women. The different study periods and definitions mean these percentages should be read as separate measurements.
The CDC also reported postpartum substance-use results from seven states. Overall, 25.6% of postpartum women reported substance use and 5.9% reported polysubstance use. Among women with six or more stressful life events before birth, postpartum substance use reached 67.1%, and 20.8% reported polysubstance use. Among women with four household-dysfunction adverse childhood experiences, substance use reached 57.9%, while polysubstance use reached 26.3%. These figures come from the CDC’s 2023 MMWR report and reflect the specified seven-state study population.
Smoking-related measures from the CDC’s 2021 data provide additional context. Among women with a recent live birth, 12.1% smoked before pregnancy, 5.4% smoked during pregnancy, and 7.2% smoked during the postpartum period. Of women who smoked before pregnancy, 56.1% quit during pregnancy. Smoking was discussed with 73.7% at a pre-pregnancy health-care visit, 93.7% at a prenatal visit, and 69.7% during the postpartum period. At a postpartum checkup specifically, 57.3% were asked about smoking.
Maternal safety and postpartum hemorrhage
The CDC reported that 31% of pregnancy-related deaths occurred during pregnancy, 36% occurred during delivery and up to one week afterward, and 33% occurred from one week to one year after delivery. These timing categories show that serious risks can continue well beyond the delivery hospitalization.
CDC National Vital Statistics System data recorded 861 maternal deaths in the United States in 2020. The U.S. maternal mortality rate was 23.8 deaths per 100,000 live births. For non-Hispanic Black women, the rate was 55.3 deaths per 100,000 live births, compared with 19.1 for non-Hispanic White women. The reported Black maternal mortality rate was 2.9 times the White rate.
Postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) is commonly defined as blood loss greater than 500 mL after vaginal birth and greater than 1,000 mL after cesarean birth. The NCBI Bookshelf estimates that PPH occurs in 6% to 11% of births worldwide. Prevalence changes with the measurement method: objective blood-loss assessment produced an estimate of 10.6%, subjective assessment produced 7.2%, and unspecified assessment produced 5.4%.
Historical U.S. estimates in the same clinical reference reported that PPH incidence increased 26%, from 2.3% in 1994 to 2.9% in 2006. Severe PPH incidence doubled from 1.9% in 1999 to 4.2% in 2008. PPH accounts for nearly one-quarter of pregnancy-related maternal deaths. In a U.S. database study covering more than 1.2 million pregnancies, tranexamic acid was used about 1% of the time during delivery; 12,394 of 1,262,574 pregnancies received it. That medication-use figure is a historical study result, not a recommendation for treatment.
Family planning after birth
The World Health Organization defined postpartum women in its 2016 family-planning guidance as women who gave birth in the previous 0 to 11 months. Across 57 countries, unmet family-planning need among postpartum women was estimated at 32% to 62%. WHO stated that a woman can become pregnant as soon as four weeks after childbirth if she is not breastfeeding.
In the cited WHO five-country postpartum family-planning study, 36,687 women were surveyed at 42 days postpartum. Fewer than 5% wanted another pregnancy within a year, yet unmet need ranged from 25% to 96% across study sites. WHO stated that reducing unmet need could reduce maternal deaths by 30% among women with very closely spaced intervals under 24 months, and could reduce infant deaths by 60% in that group. Those are modeled or reported public-health estimates tied to the specified spacing scenario.
CDC’s 2004–2006 PRAMS analysis measured contraceptive use at 2 to 9 months postpartum. Overall use of any method was 88.0%. Highly effective methods were used by 61.7%, moderately effective methods by 20.0%, less effective methods by 6.4%, and no method by 12.0%. Highly effective method use ranged from 43.2% in New York City to 79.3% in Mississippi.
Within that older CDC analysis, highly effective method use was 53.0% among women age 35 or older, 35.3% among Asian/Pacific Islander women, 67.8% among women with Medicaid before pregnancy, and 54.5% among women with no prenatal care. These categories come from a 2004–2006 measurement period and should not be read as current national estimates.
Breastfeeding after delivery
CDC breastfeeding data for U.S. children born in 2022 found that 85.7% were breastfed at birth. Exclusive breastfeeding was reported for 62.4% at 7 days, 57.5% at one month, and 27.9% at six months. Any breastfeeding was reported for 62.1% at six months, 40.8% at 12 months, and 19.2% at 18 months.
The CDC summarizes the six-month result as about one in four infants being exclusively breastfed through six months. It also says 60% of mothers do not breastfeed as long as they intended. The duration figures describe feeding patterns in the 2022 U.S. birth cohort; they do not identify why feeding changed or assign responsibility to parents.
Postpartum statistics therefore span several distinct outcomes: emotional symptoms may be reported at different months, care access depends on whether a visit and screening occurred, and risks such as hemorrhage and maternal death can extend beyond delivery. Contraception, smoking discussions, and breastfeeding measures also depend on their own populations, definitions, and measurement dates.