Background: Although birth trauma may be a risk factor for postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), no systematic review regarding the incidence of postpartum PTSD in women with traumatic childbirth has been reported.
Objective: To estimate the incidence of PTSD in women following traumatic childbirth by systematically reviewing and synthesizing all available evidence.
Search strategy: Six databases were searched using a combination of related terms for birth trauma and PTSD.
Selection criteria: Cohort and cross-sectional studies that were related to traumatic childbirth and PTSD were included.
Data collection and analysis: Two reviewers independently screened potentially relevant studies and extracted key data elements. A series of meta-analyses were conducted using STATA 17.0 software, with pooled incidence rates estimated using random effects models.
Main results: A total of nine studies were included in this study. The pooled incidence of PTSD after traumatic childbirth was 19.4% (95% confidence interval 11.9%-26.5%). The incidence of PTSD varied with the scales used to assess traumatic birth and PTSD, evaluation times of PTSD after childbirth, and types of study participants.
Conclusions: The incidence of PTSD in women with traumatic childbirth is about 19%, higher than the general obstetric population, suggesting that trauma-related care for them should be enhanced.
Keywords: meta-analysis; post-traumatic stress disorder; postpartum; systematic review; traumatic childbirth.
© 2022 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics.