Mental health implications of migration

Introduction Since late 1980s, 1,001,726 immigrants arrived in Israel from the former Soviet Union (FSU). A review of community studies on the mental health of these immigrants is presented. Method Israeli studies from the past two decades were reviewed. Presented are findings on the prevalence of psychological distress and psychiatric disorders as well as on a number of risk factors among FSU immigrants. Results Higher psychological distress and psychiatric morbidity were consistently found among FSU immigrants compared to the Israel-born. Social support was identified as a major stress-mitigating factor in migration. Most studies reveal the persistence of psychological distress among FSU immigrants during the first 5 years following migration, with a risk period around the second and third years following migration. Discussion Findings from Israel corroborate some findings on immigrants in other countries but as they are limited to a single immigrant population, replication of these studies is necessary.