scholarly journals Possible posttraumatic stress disorder in Chinese frontline healthcare workers who survived COVID-19 6 months after the COVID-19 outbreak: prevalence, correlates, and symptoms

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Li-Juan Xiong ◽  
Bao-Liang Zhong ◽  
Xiong-Jing Cao ◽  
Huang-Guo Xiong ◽  
Ming Huang ◽  
...  

AbstractSuffering from COVID-19 and witnessing the suffering and deaths of patients with COVID-19 may place frontline healthcare workers (HCWs) at particularly high risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); however, few data are available on the clinical characteristics of PTSD among frontline HCWs who survived COVID-19 (“surviving HCWs” hereafter). The present study examined the prevalence, correlates, and clinical symptoms of possible PTSD in surviving HCWs 6 months after the COVID-19 outbreak in China. A total of 291 surviving HCWs and 42 age- and gender-matched COVID-19-free frontline HCWs (control group) were recruited and administered the Chinese Essen Trauma Inventory, which was used to assess the presence of possible PTSD according to DSM-IV-TR criteria. Survivors’ clinical data and characteristics of exposure to COVID-19 were collected via self-report questionnaires. Surviving HCWs had significantly higher rates of possible PTSD than controls (19.9% vs. 4.8%, P = 0.017). Correlates of PTSD in survivors were ICU admission (OR = 8.73, P = 0.003), >10 respiratory symptoms during the most symptomatic period of COVID-19 (OR = 3.08, P = 0.006), the residual symptom of dizziness (OR = 2.43, P = 0.013), the residual symptom of difficult breathing (OR = 2.23, P = 0.027), life in danger due to COVID-19 (OR = 16.59, P = 0.006), and exposure to other traumatic events (OR = 2.94, P = 0.035). Less commonly seen PTSD symptoms in survivors were having nightmares about the event (34.5%), suddenly feeling like they were living through the event suddenly (25.9%), being unable to remember an important part of the event (32.8%), and overalertness (31.0%). Nearly one-fifth of the surviving HCWs had possible PTSD 6 months after the COVID-19 outbreak. Mental health services for this vulnerable population should include periodic screening for PTSD, expanded social support, and, when necessary, psychotherapy and psychopharmacological treatment.

2017 ◽  
Vol 41 (S1) ◽  
pp. S359-S360 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Sabic ◽  
A. Sabic

The aim of this study was to analyse frequency of embitterment in war veterans with Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as the potential impact of embitterment on the development of chronic PTSD.Patients and methodsIt was analyzed 174 subjects (from Health Center Zivinice/mental health center) through a survey conducted in the period from March 2015 to June 2016, of which 87 war veterans with PTSD and control subjects 87 war veterans without PTSD. The primary outcome measure was the post-traumatic embitterment disorder self-rating scale (PTED Scale) who contains 19 items designed to assess features of embitterment reactions to negative life events. Secondary efficacy measures included the clinician-administered PTSD scale–V (CAPS), the PTSD checklist (PCL), the combat exposure scale (CES), the Hamilton depression rating scale (HAM-D), the Hamilton anxiety rating scale (HAM-A) and the World health organization quality of life scale (WHOQOL-Bref). All subjects were male. The average age of patients in the group war veterans with PTSD was 52.78 ± 5.99. In the control group, average age was 51.42 ± 5.98. Statistical data were analyzed in SPSS statistical program.ResultsComparing the results, t-tests revealed significant difference between group veterans with PTSD and control group (t = −21,21, P < 0.0001). War veterans group with PTSD (X = 51.41, SD = 8,91), control group (X = 14.39, SD = 13.61).ConclusionEmbitterment is frequent in war veterans with PTSD.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.


2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuriy Danyk

The article is based on the concept of forming various stress-related disorders in crisis situations. It is proved that destructive informational effects in modern conditions are an integral part in the formation of crisis situation syndromes and posttraumatic stress disorder. In the course of research, the possibility of using the system of biological markers for timely detection and effective treatment of stress-associated and informational disorders was established (before other clinical symptoms or their reaching diagnostic threshold). It also allows timely assessment of the subjective adaptation threshold of people at risk, to identify and reduce the negative effects of stress-related disorders. The use of the biomarkers was also researched for the diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation, prevention of stress-related disorders among participants of crisis situations.


2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 84-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hannelies Bongaerts ◽  
Agnes Van Minnen ◽  
Ad de Jongh

There is mounting evidence suggesting that by increasing the frequency of treatment sessions, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatment outcomes significantly improve. As part of an ongoing research project, this study examined the safety and effectiveness of intensive eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy in a group of seven (four female) patients suffering from complex PTSD and multiple comorbidities resulting from childhood sexual abuse, physical abuse, and/or work and combat-related trauma. Treatment was not preceded by a preparation phase and consisted of 2 × 4 consecutive days of EMDR therapy administered in morning and afternoon sessions of 90 minutes each, interspersed with intensive physical activity and psychoeducation. Outcome measures were the Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) and the PTSD Symptom Scale Self-report questionnaire (PSS-SR). During treatment, neither personal adverse events nor dropout occurred. CAPS scores decreased significantly from pre- to posttreatment, and four of the seven patients lost their PTSD diagnosis as established with the CAPS. The results were maintained at 3-month follow-up. Effect sizes (Cohen’s d) on the CAPS and PSS-SR were large: 3.2, 1.7 (prepost) and 2.3, 2.1 (prefollow-up), respectively. The results of this case series suggest that an intensive program using EMDR therapy is a potentially safe and effective treatment alternative for complex PTSD. The application of massed, consecutive days of treatments using EMDR therapy for patients suffering from PTSD, particularly those with multiple comorbidities, merits more clinical and research attention.


Assessment ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dean Lauterbach ◽  
Scott Vrana

This paper describes three studies of the reliability and validity of a newly revised version of the Purdue Posttraumatic Stress Disorder scale (PPTSD-R). The PPTSD-R is a 17-item questionnaire that yields four scores: Reexperiencing, Avoidance, Arousal, and Total. It is highly internally consistent (α = .91), and the scores are relatively stable across time. The PPTSD-R is highly correlated with other measures of PTSD symptomatology and moderately correlated with measures of related psychopathology, providing preliminary support for the measure's convergent and discriminant validity. It reliably distinguishes between groups of people who were and were not traumatized, it is sensitive to the impact of different types of traumatic events, and (within a clinical sample) it discriminates between those who did and did not seek treatment for difficulty coping with the traumatic event being assessed. The PPTSD-R shows promise as a measure of PTSD symptoms in the college population.


2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (6) ◽  
pp. 956-963 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgina Clifford ◽  
Caitlin Hitchcock ◽  
Tim Dalgleish

AbstractBackgroundThis study examined the structure of the self-concept in a sample of sexual trauma survivors with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to healthy controls using a self-descriptive card-sorting task. We explored whether individuals with PTSD possess a highly affectively-compartmentalized self-structure, whereby positive and negative self-attributes are sectioned off into separate components of self-concept (e.g. self as an employee, lover, mother). We also examined redundancy (i.e. overlap) of positive and negative self-attributes across the different components of self-concept.MethodParticipants generated a set of self-aspects that reflected their own life (e.g. ‘self at work’). They were then asked to describe their self-aspects using list of positive or negative attributes.ResultsResults revealed that, relative to the control group, the PTSD group used a greater proportion of negative attributes and had a more compartmentalized self-structure. However, there were no significant differences between the PTSD and control groups in positive or negative redundancy. Sensitivity analyses demonstrated that the key findings were not accounted for by comorbid diagnosis of depression.ConclusionFindings indicated that the self-structure is organized differently in those with PTSD, relative to those with depression or good mental health.


2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurel L. Hourani ◽  
Jason Williams ◽  
Valerie Forman-Hoffman ◽  
Marian E. Lane ◽  
Belinda Weimer ◽  
...  

Understanding the role of spirituality as a potential coping mechanism for military personnel is important given growing concern about the mental health issues of personnel returning from war. This study seeks to determine the extent to which spirituality is associated with selected mental health problems among active duty military personnel and whether it moderates the relationship between combat exposure/deployment and (a) depression, (b) posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and (c) suicidality in active duty military personnel. Data were drawn from the 2008 Department of Defense Survey of Health Related Behaviors Among Active Duty Military Personnel. Over 24,000 randomly selected active duty personnel worldwide completed an anonymous self-report questionnaire. High spirituality had a significant protective effect only for depression symptoms. Medium, as opposed to high or low, levels of spirituality buffered each of the mental health outcomes to some degree. Medium and low spirituality levels predicted depression symptoms but only among those with moderate combat exposure. Medium spirituality levels also predicted PTSD symptoms among those with moderate levels of combat exposure and predicted self-reported suicidal ideation/attempt among those never deployed. These results point to the complex relationship between spirituality and mental health, particularly among military personnel and the need for further research.


2012 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 215-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo de Paula Lima ◽  
Sandhi Maria Barreto ◽  
Ada Ávila Assunção

INTRODUCTION: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder resulting from exposure to traumatic events. The Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL) is a self-report measure largely used to evaluate the presence of PTSD. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the internal consistency, temporal reliability and factor validity of the Portuguese language version of the PCL used in Brazil. METHODS: A total of 186 participants were recruited. The sample was heterogeneous with regard to occupation, sociodemographic data, mental health history, and exposure to traumatic events. Subjects answered the PCL at two occasions within a 15 days’ interval (range: 5-15 days). RESULTS: Cronbach’s alpha coefficients indicated high internal consistency for the total scale (0.91) and for the theoretical dimensions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) (0.83, 0.81, and 0.80). Temporal reliability (test-retest) was high and consistent for different cutoffs. Maximum likelihood exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was conducted and oblique rotation (Promax) was applied. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) index (0.911) and Bartlett’s test of sphericity (χ² = 1,381.34, p < 0.001) indicated that correlation matrices were suitable for factor analysis. The analysis yielded three symptom clusters which accounted for 48.9% of the variance, namely, intrusions, avoidance, and numbing-hyperarousal. CONCLUSION: Our findings provide additional data regarding the psychometric properties of the PCL, including internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and factor validity. Results are discussed in relation to PTSD theoretical models.


Assessment ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-17 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynda A. King ◽  
Daniel W. King ◽  
Gregory Leskin ◽  
David W. Foy

2009 ◽  
Vol 27 (18_suppl) ◽  
pp. CRA10002-CRA10002
Author(s):  
M. Stuber ◽  
K. Meeske ◽  
B. Zebrack ◽  
K. Krull ◽  
K. Stratton ◽  
...  

CRA10002 Background: This study examined prevalence and demographic- and disease-related correlates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among 6,542 adult childhood cancer survivors and 368 siblings from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. Methods: Subjects were dichotomized based on full PTSD criteria, using the Foa PTSD self-report measure to assess posttraumatic stress symptoms of intrusion of unwanted memories, avoidance of event reminders, and increased startle response, and the Brief Symptom Inventory-18 and the SF-36 subscale, role limitation due to emotional health, to evaluate clinical distress or impaired function. A self-report questionnaire provided demographic information and medical abstraction provided cancer reatment data. Multivariable generalized linear models were used to compare prevalence of PTSD among cancer survivors to siblings and to examine relationships between PTSD and demographic and disease-related factors. Relative risks (RR) were calculated based on a Poisson distribution with robust error variances. Results: Five hundred eighty-nine (9%) childhood cancer survivors and 8 (2%) siblings met criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD (RR = 3.83, 95% CI 1.96–7.48, p < 0.0001). Among cancer survivors, there was significantly more PTSD reported by women from minority backgrounds (p < 0.05). Other demographic factors associated with PTSD were having less than a college education (p < 0.05), being unmarried (p < 0.001), having an annual income less than $20,000 (p < 0.05) and being unemployed (p = 0.001). Risk of PTSD was significantly higher for survivors diagnosed at ages 15 to 20 years (p < 0.05). PTSD was more common among survivors treated with intensive chemotherapy (p < 0.05) or radiation therapy (p < 0.001) and who relapsed or developed a second malignant neoplasm (p < 0.001). Neuroblastoma and Wilms tumor survivors had a significantly lower risk of PTSD than did leukemia survivors (p < 0.05). Conclusions: While the majority of childhood cancer survivors did not demonstrate PTSD, a clinically significant number did meet diagnostic criteria. Prospective assessment of survivors with high risk demographic-, diagnosis-, and treatment-related characteristics should be considered as part of long-term health screening. No significant financial relationships to disclose.


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