Abstract
BACKGROUND: Migration between countries in the Global South remains under-researched, with even less focus on the intersections of migration, transnational motherhood, and health. This study examines factors that impact health self-perception among Venezuelan migrant women in Brazil. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted using Respondent-Driven Sampling with 2012 Venezuelan migrant women, aged 15 to 49, who migrated to Brazil between 2018 and 2021. A hierarchical logistic regression model was applied, calculating crude and adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals. FINDINGS: About a third of migrant women left children in Venezuela and experienced violence during migration. 73% were aged 15-34, 70% had completed high school, 66% identified as mixed-race, and 75% lacked paid work in the previous month. Nearly a quarter received government financial aid; most had been in Brazil for a year or less. While they rated their health better in Brazil than in Venezuela, multivariate analysis shows poorer self-rated health is strongly linked to leaving children behind and experiencing violence. INTERPRETATION: Venezuelan migrant women report better self-assessed health upon arrival in Brazil, likely due to improved access to essential services and safety. However, this perception declines due to stressors such as separation from children, economic hardship, and violence during migration and in Brazil, with poorer self-rated health linked to transnational motherhood and violence. This underscores the cumulative impact of these challenges and the need for targeted policies to address them. FUNDING: This work was supported by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ES/T00441X/1).