Accessible summary
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The aim of this study was to investigate post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and to examine whether certain associated factors affected symptom severity among 482 adolescent survivors, aged 11 to 19 years. The Child Post-Traumatic Stress Reaction Index was used to assess PTSD symptoms and the Traumatic Exposure Severity Scale to examine the severity of the disaster.
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Adolescents who suffer a traumatic experience as serious as a tsunami can suffer PTSD even if the event occurred some years earlier. This outcome is shown by the results of this study in which very severe to moderate PTSD symptoms occurred in 63.1% of 482 participants.
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The results of this study showed that the factors that influenced the severity level of PTSD symptoms were gender, loss of parents, low support level and heavy somatic response. Females showed more PTSD symptoms, from severe to very severe, but on the other hand, this study indicated that age and school grade, and also traumatic experience, did not influence PTSD symptoms. Differences in level of severity of PTSD symptoms did not differ between those who had a single traumatic experience or multiple experiences.
Abstract
The aim of this study was to identify long-term post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in Aceh 4.5 years after the tsunami and to examine whether certain factors affected the severity of PTSD symptoms among adolescents. The PTSD symptoms of 482 adolescents aged 11 to 19 years were assessed according to the Child Post-Traumatic Stress Reaction Index (CPTSD-RI). The severity of the disaster was identified by the Traumatic Exposure Severity Scale (TESS). Of the adolescents who completed the questionnaire, 54 (11.2%), 124 (25.7%), 196 (40.7%), 103 (21.4%) and 5 (1%), respectively, reported none, mild, moderate, severe and very severe symptoms on CPTSD-RI. Gender, loss of parents, somatic response and support level were significantly associated with the total score on CPTSD-RI (P < 0.05). The TESS-Occurrence Scale and CPTSD-RI were significantly correlated (r= 0.33, P < 0.05). The TESS-Distress Scale was significantly correlated with CPTSD-RI (r= 0.48, P < 0.05). The study indicated that the symptoms of PTSD, ranging from very severe to moderate, could persist for a long time after the tsunami and be affected by gender, loss of parents, somatic response, support level and severity of the disaster.