Pregnant women with a fear of childbirth are at an increased risk of postpartum depression, according to a recent study, reported by Counsel and Heal.

Postpartum depression is a form of moderate to severe depression that occurs in the first few months after childbirth. The condition can make new mothers feel worthless and can cause the mother to have trouble caring for and bonding with her baby, according to WebMD.

"Giving birth is a powerful experience both physically and mentally, and a variety of emotions are present," researchers said in a press release.

An international team of researchers examined the data of more than 500,000 mothers in Finland from the Finnish medical birth register, the Finnish congenital malformations register and the Finnish hospital discharge register. The team had access to information on a total of 511,422 single births that occurred within the country between 2002 and 2010, Counsel and Heal.

They found that, in Finland, the risk of postpartum depression is highest after the first childbirth. Postpartum depression was diagnosed in 5.3 percent of women with a history of depression, while approximately one-third of women experiencing postpartum depression had no history of depression.

The condition was diagnosed in 0.3 percent of all mothers delivering a single birth in 2002-2010.

In these women, physician-diagnosed fear of childbirth during pregnancy was discovered to nearly triple the risk of postpartum depression. Other risk factors included Caesarean section, pre-term birth and major congenital anomaly, according to a press release.

Based on the study, as much as 50 to 80 percent of women suffer from baby blues after birth, and some women develop postpartum depression the severity of which may range from minor symptoms to psychotic depression.

"The consequences of postpartum depression may be severe. For example, postpartum depression may affect the mother's abilities and skills to engage in delicate interaction with the child, and thus impair the development of an attachment relationship - possibly affecting the child's later development and well-being," researchers said.

The study, which relies on diagnosis-based data on postpartum depression, was recently published in BMJ Open.