Effects of trauma-focused psychotherapy upon war refugees.
The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of a trauma-focused psychotherapy upon war refugees from Bosnia. Seventy refugees who met the criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and somatoform disorders were included. The first 35 refugees were offered psychotherapy and the following 35 refugees received usual care. Outcome variables were changes in self-reported PTSD symptoms, psychological symptoms, and health status. At 12-month follow-up, participants in the intervention group reported significantly lower scores on the PTSD scale and the measure of psychological symptoms than the comparison group participants. Our results suggest that psychotherapy reduces symptoms of PTSD and somatoform disorders among war refugees even in the presence of insecure residence status.
Kruse
Johannes
J
Department of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Giessen, Friedrichstrasse 33, 35392 Giessen, Germany. Johannes.kruse@psycho.med.uni-giessen.de
Joksimovic
Ljiljana
L
Cavka
Majda
M
Wöller
Wolfgang
W
Schmitz
Norbert
N
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017522:Bosnia and Herzegovina / Q000208:ethnology; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology*; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D014857:Warfare; D055815:Young Adult