Characteristics and treatment needs of sexually abused pregnant women in drug rehabilitation. The Massachusetts MOTHERS Project.

Four hundred forty-seven Medicaid-eligible pregnant chemically dependent women were interviewed during their stay in publicly funded detoxification centers in Massachusetts. One hundred eighty-four women (41%) reported sexual abuse during their lifetime. Sexually abused women differed significantly from women who had not been abused, on a variety of psychological, social, and medical problems indicators. Sexually abused women appear to constitute a specific subgroup of the larger population of substance abusing women, and have unique treatment needs.