Childbirth is expected to be one of life’s most meaningful events, yet for some women it becomes psychologically traumatic. This study asks a practical question: can a short questionnaire reliably recognize that hidden distress in Lithuania? Pregnancy and childbirth bring significant physical, psychological, social, and spiritual changes for women.

It is a period marked by tremendous transformation, transition, and adjustment to a new phase of life. But childbirth is not positive for everyone. Studies indicate that twenty to forty-eight percent of women find giving birth psychologically traumatic, and clinically significant post-traumatic stress symptoms are present in up to sixteen point eight percent of women.

A positive childbirth experience promotes women’s health both during and beyond the period around birth. That makes recognition important. But little research on birth-related trauma has been conducted in Lithuania, and there are no validated measures of birth-related post-traumatic stress and stress symptoms for use in the country.

In Lithuania, concern about birth-related trauma may be real, but little research has been conducted and no validated measures have been established to recognize it reliably. The study’s goal was to translate, adapt, psychometrically test, and validate the City Birth Trauma Scale in the Lithuanian language and culture.

Its secondary aim was to report the prevalence of birth-related stress symptoms among the study population. The City Birth Trauma Scale was developed in twenty eighteen. It is designed around diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder and is used to assess post-traumatic stress disorder following childbirth.

Its initial two questions ask whether the event involved concerns about serious harm or death of the woman or the baby, with responses scored as yes or no. The four-factor solution showed poor fit and was rejected. The two-factor model had a good fit, with birth-related symptoms and general symptoms moderately correlated.

The bifactor model also had a good fit and outperformed the two-factor model in these analyses, making it the stronger tested solution. The pattern of post-traumatic stress symptoms among Lithuanian women corresponded to a United Kingdom study assessing the original version of the scale.

Around seven point nine seven percent of the Lithuanian sample and seven point one percent of the United Kingdom sample met the diagnostic criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder, fulfilling all diagnostic criteria. A German study reported a much lower percentage, with only two point eight percent of women meeting the criteria.

The findings need caution because a substantial portion of participants were recruited through online and social media platforms, making the response rate difficult to determine. Self-selection and limited personal data made it harder to assess how representative the sample was, and online-recruited samples may have had a higher-risk profile that could inflate estimates of post-traumatic stress disorder prevalence.

The study also did not include a test-retest measurement, which limits conclusions about the stability of the Lithuanian scale over time. The Lithuanian version of the City Birth Trauma Scale showed good validity and reliability, giving healthcare workers a way to identify birth-related trauma symptoms and helping affected women become easier to find and support.