Refugee Women with a History of Trauma: Gender Vulnerability in Relation to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Macarena Vallejo-Martín,Jesús M. Canto,Ana Sánchez Sancha

doi:10.3390/ijerph18094806

Macarena Vallejo-Martín, Jesús M. Canto + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094806

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Abstract

Refugees represent a population whose living conditions have a strong impact on their mental health. High rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), more than other mental disorders, have been found in this group, with women having the highest incidence. The objective of the present systematic review was to identify and examine studies from the last fifteen years on the relationship between the impact of traumatic experiences and PTSD psychopathology in refugee women. Twelve studies were included, from which the overall results approved this relation. In addition, six of these studies show that exposure to sexual trauma in refugee women is associated with the high odds of being at risk for PTSD. These findings suggest that gender-related traumatic experiences can explain the high rate of PTSD in refugee women and highlight the unmet need for psychosocial health care in this population.

Highlights

At present, we are in the midst of a humanitarian crisis that is causing millions of people to be displaced, for reasons of war, violence and the precarious situations in their countries of origin
The objective of this study is to present a systematic review that analyzes the relation between the impact of traumatic experiences in refugee women and developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
We would like to underline that mental health disorders are to a large extent determined by social and cultural factors and they must be taken into consideration for their analysis and intervention in refugees

Summary

Introduction

We are in the midst of a humanitarian crisis that is causing millions of people to be displaced, for reasons of war, violence and the precarious situations in their countries of origin. The circumstances in which refugees often flee cause them to experience mental health problems and a significant deterioration in their psychological well-being [2,3]. Mental disorders and psychosocial problems are much more frequent in individuals that have had to confront these types of adversities, such as being exposed to a humanitarian crisis [4] or experiencing different types of discrimination [5]. In this sense, it was confirmed that refugees have a rate of mental disorders that is twice than that identified in migrant workers [6]. The traumatic events experienced before and during displacement cause refugees to suffer from psychological manifestations related to loss of persons or places with symptoms of grief, traumatic reactions and even dissociative symptoms or acute stress disorders [7]

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