Background. The study aimed to assess the current and
lifetime rates of post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD) and major depression (MDD) among Nazi concentration camps
survivors.Methods. We investigated 51 Italian political deportees and
47 Resistance Movement veterans who
reported traumatic experiences during active service. The Structured Clinical
Interview for DSM-IV was used to assess the presence of PTSD and MDD. The
Dissociative Experiences Scale and the
shorter version of the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist were also administered.Results. The lifetime rates of PTSD and MDD were 35·3%
and 45·1% respectively among
deportees and 4·3% and 6·4% among former partisans. The current
rates for PTSD and MDD were
25·5% and 33·3% among deportees and 4·3% and 4·3%
among former partisans. Dissociative
symptoms were more severe among deportees than among Resistance movement
veterans.Conclusions. Concentration camp internment, even for political
reasons, appears to have severe
long-term psychiatric consequences.