Abstract: Mental Health Challenges Among Women in the Perinatal Period during Armed Conflict (Society for Social Work and Research 30th Annual Conference Anniversary)

Schedule:

Saturday, January 17, 2026

Marquis BR 9, ML 2 (Marriott Marquis Washington DC)

* noted as presenting author

Rena Bina, PhD, Senior lecturer, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel

Vered Bar, Head, Chava center, Sheba medical center, Israel

Galit Neufeld-kroszynski, Head of research and knowledge development, Briah Fund, Israel

Inbal Reuveni, head of inpatient psychiatric department, Ichilov Medical center, Israel

Vered Maugami, Master's student, Bar Ilan University

Samira Alfayumi-Zeadna, PhD, Lecturer, Ashkelon College, Israel

Background and purpose: Armed conflicts, in addition to causing death and destruction, have a negative impact on mental health. Vulnerable populations, such as perinatal (pregnant and up to one-year postpartum) women, are particularly prone to mental health challenges, e.g., perinatal depression (PND) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), during periods of conflict. These mental health challenges have potentially devastating long-term personal and familial consequences. While the prevalence of PND usually ranges between 10%-20%, there is a paucity of studies on PND and PTSD among women in the perinatal period during armed conflicts. Hence, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of PND and PTSD symptoms during the recent armed conflict between Israel and Gaza, and to identify related risk factors for PND at this time.

Methods: A cross-sectional study included 862 perinatal women who completed an online self-report questionnaire assessing their perinatal experiences and emotional responses to the war. PND symptoms were measured using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), with EPDS>=10 indicating presence PND symptoms. PTSD symptoms were assessed with the Primary Care PTSD Screen (PC-PTSD-5).

Results: The prevalence of PND symptoms among participants was 32.7% and over one-third (34.2%) reported experiencing PTSD symptoms. Reduction in family income due to the war was experienced by 26% of participants, and 3% of participants' own homes were damaged. The results of a multivariable logistic regression analysis (N = 862, -2 log likelihood = 794.99, χ2 = 187.37, p < .001) demonstrated that women who experienced PTSD and those with a history of mental health conditions were nearly twice as likely to report PND symptoms compared to those without PTSD or without a mental health history (OR = 1.7, p = 0.003, OR = 1.7, p = 0.002), respectively. Pregnant women experienced a 1.5 times higher risk of PND symptoms compared to postpartum women (OR = 1.529, p = 0.039). Moreover, participants whose family income decreased due to the war were nearly twice as likely to experience PND symptoms compared to those who did not experience such a reduction in income (OR = 1.8, p < 0.001), and participants whose homes were damaged had almost three times higher risk of experiencing PND symptoms compared to those whose homes were not damaged (OR = 2.7, p = 0.039).

Conclusions and implications: Symptoms of PND and PTSD have dramatically elevated among perinatal women during the war, emphasizing the urgent need for targeted mental health interventions during and after armed conflicts. Social workers who work with and advocate for vulnerable populations, such as women in the perinatal period, should work closely with policy makers in order to assure development of adequate mental health interventions aimed at promoting resilience and reducing negative impacts of the complex mental health issues and life circumstances women in the perinatal period experience in conflict zones. Moreover, due to the paucity of research on PND in conflict zones, more research on long-term mental health consequences post-conflict among perinatal women are needed.