Prevalence of Stress, Anxiety, and Depression Among Pregnant Women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background & Objective: Pregnancy is a vulnerable period for psychological distress, yet Riyadh-specific data describing stress, anxiety, and depression simultaneously and their correlates remain limited. This study was conducted with aim to estimate the prevalence of antenatal stress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms among pregnant women in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.Materials & Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between March and May 2025 under the supervision of King Saud University Medical City. Pregnant women residing in Riyadh completed an anonymous online questionnaire distributed via social media. Data included sociodemographic and obstetric characteristics. Perinatal anxiety was assessed using the Arabic Perinatal Anxiety Screening Scale (PASS; high-risk cut-off ≥26), and depression/anxiety/stress symptoms were assessed using the Arabic Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) with standard severity thresholds. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics (version 26) and chi-square and t-tests. P<0.05 was considered significant.Results: A total of 240 pregnant women were analyzed. On PASS, 58.5% screened as high risk for a perinatal anxiety disorder; mean subscale scores were highest for excessive worry and fear (13.92±7.57) and perfectionism/control/trauma (11.69±5.96). On DASS-21, 37.5% reported at least mild depressive symptoms, 54.0% at least mild anxiety symptoms, and 25.0% at least mild stress symptoms. Anxiety was the most prominent dimension of distress, with 24.0% moderate and 20.0% severe/extremely severe anxiety.Conclusion: Antenatal psychological distress particularly anxiety was common in this sample in Riyadh, supporting routine perinatal mental health screening and tiered referral pathways within antenatal care.