BACKGROUND: The objective of the study is to describe the community prevalence of psychiatric disorder, mainly posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) 3 years after a devastating earthquake. METHODS: Three years after the Marmara Earthquake, 683 individuals from the epicentre were randomly selected to form a representative sample and were assessed with Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Traumatic Stress Symptom Checklist (TSSC) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS: The 36 months prevalence of PTSD and MDD after the Marmara Earthquake were 19.2% and 18.7% respectively. The current prevalence of PTSD and MDD in the affected community was found to be 11.7% and 10.5%, respectively. PTSD and MDD were the most prevalent disorders after the disaster and showed a decrease over time. However, only 38.9% of the PTSD cases identified at any time over the 3 years were in remission at the 3rd-year. The co-occurrence of MDD with PTSD resulted in a decrease in the rate of recovery from PTSD. MDD was also the most prevalent disorder accompanying PTSD. Of all the subjects 37.5% with PTSD still met the MDD criteria at the 3rd year postearthquake. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with the data from pre-earthquake national mental health profile, the present study showed that the prevalence of MDD, panic disorder, OCD, GAD, social phobia and special phobias were still higher in the affected region 3 years after the earthquake.
BACKGROUND: The objective of the study is to describe the community prevalence of psychiatric disorder, mainly posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) 3 years after a devastating earthquake. METHODS: Three years after the Marmara Earthquake, 683 individuals from the epicentre were randomly selected to form a representative sample and were assessed with Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI), General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), Traumatic Stress Symptom Checklist (TSSC) and Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). RESULTS: The 36 months prevalence of PTSD and MDD after the Marmara Earthquake were 19.2% and 18.7% respectively. The current prevalence of PTSD and MDD in the affected community was found to be 11.7% and 10.5%, respectively. PTSD and MDD were the most prevalent disorders after the disaster and showed a decrease over time. However, only 38.9% of the PTSD cases identified at any time over the 3 years were in remission at the 3rd-year. The co-occurrence of MDD with PTSD resulted in a decrease in the rate of recovery from PTSD. MDD was also the most prevalent disorder accompanying PTSD. Of all the subjects 37.5% with PTSD still met the MDD criteria at the 3rd year postearthquake. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with the data from pre-earthquake national mental health profile, the present study showed that the prevalence of MDD, panic disorder, OCD, GAD, social phobia and special phobias were still higher in the affected region 3 years after the earthquake.
Authors: H K Armenian; M Morikawa; A K Melkonian; A P Hovanesian; N Haroutunian; P A Saigh; K Akiskal; H S Akiskal Journal: Acta Psychiatr Scand Date: 2000-07 Impact factor: 6.392
Authors: A K Goenjian; L M Najarian; R S Pynoos; A M Steinberg; G Manoukian; A Tavosian; L A Fairbanks Journal: Am J Psychiatry Date: 1994-06 Impact factor: 18.112
Authors: M Cerdá; P M Bordelois; S Galea; F Norris; M Tracy; K C Koenen Journal: Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol Date: 2012-08-10 Impact factor: 4.328