Impact of a technological disaster on young children: a five-year postdisaster multiinformant study.
Children exposed to a technological disaster during an understudied part of the lifespan, preschool age and early middle childhood, were assessed in a 5-year follow-up regarding mental health problems, anxiety disorder symptoms, depressive symptoms, physical symptoms, and posttraumatic stress symptoms. Exposed children and their parents (n = 264) reported significantly more problems than controls (n = 515). The differences were greater for conduct problems (including hyperactivity) and physical symptoms, than for anxiety and depression. The long-term effects of a technological disaster on children of pre-school age at exposure appear to differ from those in children, who were victimized at a later age. This may reflect interference with completion of specific developmental tasks.
Boer
Frits
F
Academic Medical Centre, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry/de Bascule, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. f.boer@amc.uva.nl
Smit
Cees
C
Morren
Mattijn
M
Roorda
Jan
J
Yzermans
Joris
J
D000293:Adolescent; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002667:Child Reactive Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D019955:Conduct Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D004190:Disasters; D005107:Explosions; D005260:Female; D005390:Fires; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D009426:Netherlands; D015588:Observer Variation; D010552:Personality Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology