title: Post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression among the elderly: a survey of the hard-hit areas a year after the Wenchuan earthquake.
abstract: Few studies to date have examined psychological sequelae of natural disasters among the elderly in China. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence rates of probable post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression in the elderly survivors a year after the Wenchuan earthquake as well as to analyse related risk factors. The community-based sample of the study consisted of 284 elderly survivors (≥60 years). PTSD was assessed by the PTSD Checklist--Civilian version, and anxiety and depression were assessed by the Hopkins Symptoms Checklist. In total, the estimated prevalence rates of probable PTSD, anxiety and depression were 26.3%, 42.9% and 35.2%, respectively. Nearly a fifth of the elderly participants reported symptoms that meet the criteria for all three of these mental disorders. Results indicated that some factors associated with earthquake-exposure intensity, which included loss of livelihood, bereavement, injury and initial fear during the earthquake, were among the significant risk factors for these mental disorders. Women had a higher risk of suffering from probable anxiety as compared to men. Finally, the significance and limitations of this study were also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing City, China. zhangz@psych.ac.cn
authors.forename: Zhen
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Zhanbiao
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Mingxin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology*; D000369:Aged, 80 and over / Q000523:psychology*; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D001601:Bereavement; D057189:Checklist / Q000379:methods; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D055866:Earthquakes; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D018571:Sentinel Surveillance; D017678:Sex Distribution; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data