The prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder during pregnancy and postpartum period

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE: The majority of formerly conducted studies have focused on the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder merely during pregnancy period; however, pregnancy period is by itself accompanied with the stress of getting pregnant again; therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) during pregnancy and postpartum period. METHODS: A total of 3475 articles were found by searching keywords of PTSD, pregnancy, stress, and birth, through various research databases, including PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct; 37 papers turned out to be completely relevant, 18 of which had provided through examination of the prevalence of intended disorder. RESULTS: The prevalence rate varied from 0% to 21% in community-related samples; this rate varied from 0% to 43% in high-risk samples. CONCLUSION: PTSD is a common phenomenon during pregnancy and postpartum period, and it might get worse and worse unless it is diagnosed and treated after delivery. Thus, it is recommended to assess pregnancy and postpartum services.