- Approximately half of survivors meet criteria for PTSD, depression, or anxiety, and one in five has attempted suicide, necessitating routine screening and trauma‑informed care.
- Studies showed extreme heterogeneity (I2 96.9-98.9%), producing wide prediction intervals; pooled estimates should inform service planning rather than precise population prevalence.
- Only geographical region explained variation for depression; exploitation modality and gender did not, while service use was rarely reported and structural determinants were not operationalised.
Arch Womens Ment Health. 2026 Sep 17;29(5):123. doi: 10.1007/s00737-026-01764-5.
ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Survivors of trafficking for sexual exploitation endure sustained violence, coercion and isolation, yet the resulting psychiatric burden has not been reliably quantified across global settings. We aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence of mental-health disorders among survivors, to test whether geographical region, exploitation modality or gender explains variation between studies, and to establish how comprehensively the existing literature reports survivors’ help-seeking and the structural determinants of their care.
METHODS: We searched PubMed/MEDLINE, Web of Science, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library and Scopus for quantitative studies published between January 2000 and December 2025 reporting mental-health outcomes among survivors of trafficking involving sexual exploitation. Prevalence was pooled using random-effects models; heterogeneity was quantified using I2 and τ2 and summarised with prediction intervals. Region, exploitation modality and gender were tested as exploratory moderators (PROSPERO CRD420251250797).
RESULTS: Eighteen studies were included. Pooled prevalence was 44.0% for PTSD (95% CI 30.3-58.7; 15 studies), 50.5% for depression (16 studies), 52.3% for anxiety (14 studies) and 19.1% for suicide attempts (4 studies). Heterogeneity was extreme (I2 96.9-98.9%), with correspondingly wide prediction intervals (7.0-89.1% for PTSD). Only region was associated with variation, and only for depression. Two studies reported extractable service-use data; none operationalised structural determinants.
CONCLUSIONS: Around half of survivors meet symptom criteria for PTSD, depression or anxiety, and one in five has attempted suicide, a burden warranting routine screening and sustained trauma-informed care wherever survivors are identified. Wide between-study variation means these figures should guide service planning rather than be read as precise population estimates.
PMID:42752993 | DOI:10.1007/s00737-026-01764-5
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