Preliminary report of psychiatric disorders in survivors of a severe earthquake.
OBJECTIVE
The authors' goal was to study psychiatric morbidity after a natural disaster in rural India.


METHODS
As members of a volunteer medical team assigned to 23 households in three villages in India affected by an earthquake, the authors examined the results of semi-structured interviews used to interview all of the adults (older than 14 years) in these households (N=56). DSM-III-R diagnoses were assigned on the basis of these interviews, and non-parametric tests were applied to comparisons of subjects who were or were not given a psychiatric diagnosis.


RESULTS
Thirty-three (59%) of the subjects received a psychiatric diagnosis; the most common diagnoses were posttraumatic stress disorder (13 subjects [23%]) and major depression (12 subjects [21%]). Psychiatric morbidity was associated with female sex, destruction of house, and destruction of possessions.


CONCLUSIONS
Attention to the mental health needs of disaster survivors in third world countries is indicated.
Sharan
P
P
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India.
Chaudhary
G
G
Kavathekar
S A
SA
Saxena
S
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology; D003906:Developing Countries; D004190:Disasters; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012424:Rural Population; D012737:Sex Factors; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology; D013534:Survival / Q000523:psychology*