<span class="word">Children’s <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Behavioral <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Development <span class="word">in <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Correlation <span class="word">with <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Post-<span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Partum <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Mental <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Health <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">During <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Pandemic <span class="word"><span class="changedDisabled">Period

Keywords: Socioemotional development; Preschool children; Child Behavior Checklist; Postpartum depression; Maternal mood; Pandemic; Behavioral outcomes; Pediatric awareness Abstract Background/Objectives: Maternal post-partum mood alterations and the COVID-19 pandemic are recognized risk factors for children’s socioemotional difficulties. This study aims to assess behavioral outcomes in preschool children born to mothers previously screened for post-partum depression (EPDS &gt;9), comparing cohorts evaluated during and after the pandemic through the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL 1½–5). Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted on a sample of 52 children aged 1.5-3 years, whose mothers had previously been screened with Edinburgh Post-natal Depression Scale (EPDS) for another project. Two cohorts were defined by the birth date (during pandemic: Jan 2022-April2022 ; post-pandemic: October 2023-November 2023). Primary outcomes were CBCL T-scores in correlation with EPDS scores, the secondary outcome was the correlation with pandemic period. Group differences were tested using appropriate parametric (t-test) or non-parametric (Mann–Whitney U) tests for continuous data, and χ² or Fisher’s exact tests for categorical data. Sensitivity analyses confirmed robustness. Results: Children assessed in the post-pandemic period showed significantly lower internalizing and Total Problems T-scores compared to those assessed during the pandemic, while Externalizing problems T-scores remained similar. The proportion of children in clinical CBCL range decreased in post-pandemic period. Conclusions: Findings suggest a partial post-pandemic improvement in emotional-behavioral functioning among children. Such results may help raise pediatricians’ awareness of unusual demeanors or subtle behavioral cues in children born during the pandemic.