The Prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Following Childbirth and its Predictors in Iranian Women

Abstract

Objectives: The present study aimed at evaluating the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following childbirth and its sociodemographic and obstetrics predictors. Methods: The current cross sectional study was conducted from April to November 2017 by the random sampling method on 365 women aged 18 - 35 years whose last childbirth occurred within 38 - 42 weeks of gestation and gave birth 10 - 16 weeks before the initiation of the study, in Baneh City, Kurdistan Province, Iran. The research tools included a sociodemographic and obstetrics characteristics questionnaire and a checklist of PTSD for DSM-IV. For data analysis, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and multiple linear regression with backward stepwise selection were employed. Results: The prevalence of PTSD following childbirth was 47.7%. The mean ± standard deviation of PTSD following childbirth was 13.6 ± 10.9, out of the attainable score of 0 - 51. The variables, including income status, number of children, desired route of delivery, and the type of recent delivery, were identified as predictors and accounted for 34% of the variance of PTSD adjusted for other variables. Conclusions: Considering the high prevalence of PTSD following childbirth, to improve the childbirth experience, well-adjusted interventions should be planned to prevent PTSD after delivery.