[Health-related quality of life and post-traumatic stress disorder in political prisoners of the former GDR].
OBJECTIVE
Political persecution was and is a reality in our world. The study investigated effects of political imprisonment in the former German Democratic Republic on the current health-related quality of life and on the existence of a post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).


METHODS
A sample of 157 former political prisoners was surveyed with a questionnaire containing the EORTC QLQ-C30 and the IES-R.


RESULTS
Former political prisoners of the GDR reported a lower quality of life than the general population. There is no consistent impact of imprisonment-related variables (e. g. duration of imprisonment) on health-related quality of life. At least, based on questionnaire data it can be estimated that 50% of the people in the sample suffer from a PTSD.


CONCLUSIONS
The results provide further evidence that former political prisoners suffer from the traumatic experience of political persecution also in a long term.
Weissflog
Gregor
G
Universität Leipzig, Department für Psychische Gesundheit, Selbstständige Abteilung für Medizinische Psychologie und Medizinische Soziologie, Leipzig. gregor.weissfl og@medizin.uni-leipzig.de
Klinitzke
Grit
G
Hinz
Andreas
A
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003148:Communism; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D005859:Germany, East; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology*; D011788:Quality of Life; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires