Addressing the role of COVID-19 pandemic-induced Mental Health Problems on the Emergence of suicide among Pregnant Women, Egypt: A case-control study”

Addressing the role of COVID-19 pandemic-induced Mental Health Problems on the Emergence of suicide among Pregnant Women, Egypt: A case-control study” | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Addressing the role of COVID-19 pandemic-induced Mental Health Problems on the Emergence of suicide among Pregnant Women, Egypt: A case-control study” Mervat Said, Eman Fouad, Walid Hassan, Amr Mostafa Kamel Abu Al-Fath, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Background Before the emergence of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the research reported that pregnancy is associated with increased suicide risk. However, data regarding the impact of COVID-19 on suicidal risk is not conclusive, and most of the studies are derived from Western countries. This study aimed to identify the suicidal risk and clinical correlates among pregnant women in Egypt during the COVID-19 crisis. A case-control study design was used in this study and included 245 pregnant women, and an equal number of non-pregnant women served as the control group. Pregnant participants were recruited from the Outpatient Departments (OPD) attending antenatal care services within the Obstetrics and Gynecology clinic at Zagazig University Hospital (ZUH) in Sharkia, Egypt. The control group consisted of non-pregnant relatives accompanying the pregnant participants. Data were collected through interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire to gather sociodemographic and clinical information, along with the administration of the following scales: Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSS). Results It indicated that the pregnant group had higher levels of anxiety, depression, and stress compared to the control group. Moderate to severe symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS) were found in 18.1% of the pregnant women, compared to 12.2% in the non-pregnant group. Additionally, the pregnant group had a significantly higher mean total score on the BSS. Predictive factors for suicidal tendencies in the pregnant group included living in urban areas, a family history of suicide, changes in the employment status of the participants or their spouses, PTSS, and experiencing inter-partner violence (IPV) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the mental well-being of pregnant women and increased the risk of suicide. Experiencing changes in employment status, particularly the husband, PTSS, and exposure to IPV are the most significant predictors of suicide during the COVID-19 crisis. COVID-19 pandemics suicide pregnant Egypt Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5158213","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":367156775,"identity":"709ae88c-5b2d-48d4-85a5-1e0945e494e2","order_by":0,"name":"Mervat Said","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Zagazig University","correspondingAuthor":true,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mervat","middleName":"","lastName":"Said","suffix":""},{"id":367156776,"identity":"f50ad64a-b8ec-4889-9c9c-60cbb2639359","order_by":1,"name":"Eman Fouad","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Zagazig University","correspondingAuthor":false,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Eman","middleName":"","lastName":"Fouad","suffix":""},{"id":367156777,"identity":"d6c44400-fd95-40ec-8d6c-7da3f3ad782c","order_by":2,"name":"Walid Hassan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Ain Shams University","correspondingAuthor":false,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Walid","middleName":"","lastName":"Hassan","suffix":""},{"id":367156778,"identity":"f6e0bffa-aefd-4dc4-8459-add7bf2aafce","order_by":3,"name":"Amr Mostafa Kamel Abu Al-Fath","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Zagazig University","correspondingAuthor":false,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Amr","middleName":"Mostafa Kamel Abu","lastName":"Al-Fath","suffix":""},{"id":367156779,"identity":"9b3cb591-7d9a-4fbc-a46c-13196e0812da","order_by":4,"name":"Yomna Ahmed Khalil","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Zagazig University","correspondingAuthor":false,"submittingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yomna","middleName":"Ahmed","lastName":"Khalil","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-09-26 11:08:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":70196575,"identity":"c9f568ed-e40b-403e-ab76-2136a5bdd46c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-11-29 11:38:39","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":336638,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"1BlindedmanuscriptMECPdocx.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-5158213/v1_covered_f7d79b3f-434f-420f-9264-ad8a5635a72c.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Addressing the role of COVID-19 pandemic-induced Mental Health Problems on the Emergence of suicide among Pregnant Women, Egypt: A case-control study”","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"COVID-19 pandemics, suicide, pregnant, Egypt","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003ch2\u003eBackground\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eBefore the emergence of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, the research reported that pregnancy is associated with increased suicide risk. However, data regarding the impact of COVID-19 on suicidal risk is not conclusive, and most of the studies are derived from Western countries. This study aimed to identify the suicidal risk and clinical correlates among pregnant women in Egypt during the COVID-19 crisis. A case-control study design was used in this study and included 245 pregnant women, and an equal number of non-pregnant women served as the control group. Pregnant participants were recruited from the Outpatient Departments (OPD) attending antenatal care services within the Obstetrics and Gynecology clinic at Zagazig University Hospital (ZUH) in Sharkia, Egypt. The control group consisted of non-pregnant relatives accompanying the pregnant participants. Data were collected through interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire to gather sociodemographic and clinical information, along with the administration of the following scales: Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21), Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S), Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSS).\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eResults\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eIt indicated that the pregnant group had higher levels of anxiety, depression, and stress compared to the control group. Moderate to severe symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms (PTSS) were found in 18.1% of the pregnant women, compared to 12.2% in the non-pregnant group. Additionally, the pregnant group had a significantly higher mean total score on the BSS. Predictive factors for suicidal tendencies in the pregnant group included living in urban areas, a family history of suicide, changes in the employment status of the participants or their spouses, PTSS, and experiencing inter-partner violence (IPV) during the COVID-19 pandemic.\u003c/p\u003e\u003ch2\u003eConclusion\u003c/h2\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the mental well-being of pregnant women and increased the risk of suicide. Experiencing changes in employment status, particularly the husband, PTSS, and exposure to IPV are the most significant predictors of suicide during the COVID-19 crisis.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Addressing the role of COVID-19 pandemic-induced Mental Health Problems on the Emergence of suicide among Pregnant Women, Egypt: A case-control study”","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2024-11-21 12:29:35","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-5158213/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"132513f7-d22c-4ffe-8ad9-11a5bbbdc040","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 21st, 2024","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2024-11-29T11:38:13+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2024-11-21 12:29:35","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-5158213","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-5158213","identity":"rs-5158213","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"veTbxFhMMB0_faC6-Wkog","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}