Posttraumatic stress disorder and trauma in youth in juvenile detention.
OBJECTIVE
To determine prevalence estimates of exposure to trauma and 12-month rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among juvenile detainees by demographic subgroups (sex, race/ethnicity, and age).


METHODS
Epidemiologic study of juvenile detainees. Master's level clinical research interviewers administered the PTSD module of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, version IV (DISC-IV), to randomly selected detainees.


METHODS
A large, temporary detention center for juveniles in Cook County, Illinois (which includes Chicago and surrounding suburbs).


METHODS
Randomly selected, stratified sample of 898 African American, non-Hispanic white, and Hispanic youth (532 males, 366 females, aged 10-18 years) arrested and newly detained.


METHODS
Diagnostic Interview Schedule for Children, version IV.


RESULTS
Most participants (92.5%) had experienced 1 or more traumas (mean, 14.6 incidents; median, 6 incidents). Significantly more males (93.2%) than females (84.0%) reported at least 1 traumatic experience; 11.2% of the sample met criteria for PTSD in the past year. More than half of the participants with PTSD reported witnessing violence as the precipitating trauma.


CONCLUSIONS
Trauma and PTSD seem to be more prevalent among juvenile detainees than in community samples. We recommend directions for research and discuss implications for mental health policy.
Abram
Karen M
KM
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA.
Teplin
Linda A
LA
Charles
Devon R
DR
Longworth
Sandra L
SL
McClelland
Gary M
GM
Dulcan
Mina K
MK
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D002648:Child; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007604:Juvenile Delinquency; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011330:Prisons; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000523:psychology