title: Alexithymia and PTSD symptoms in urban police officers: cross-sectional and prospective findings.
abstract: The relationship of alexithymia to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology was examined cross-sectionally in 166 urban police officers surveyed between 1998 and 1999 and prospectively in 54 of these officers who participated in a follow-up survey after the September 11, 2001 (9/11) terrorist attacks. In cross-sectional analyses, alexithymia scores were positively associated with PTSD symptom levels and self-reported childhood emotional abuse--neglect, but not with cumulative level of critical incident exposure. Alexithymia scores accounted for 11.2% of the variance in PTSD symptoms prior to accounting for additional predictors, but did not retain significance in the final model. In prospective analyses, alexithymia scores significantly predicted 9/11-related PTSD symptom severity over and above pre-9/11 PTSD symptoms.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry Service, San Francisco Veterans Administration Medical Center, CA 94121, USA. Shannon.Mccaslin@ucsf.edu
authors.forename: Shannon E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: McCaslin
authors.forename: Thomas J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Metzler
authors.forename: Suzanne R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Best
authors.forename: Akiva
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Liberman
authors.forename: Daniel S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: Jeffrey
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fagan
authors.forename: Charles R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Marmar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000523:psychology*; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016495:Police; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D047851:September 11 Terrorist Attacks / Q000523:psychology*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population