title: Psychological impact of the tsunami on elderly survivors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The study aimed at comparing the psychiatric morbidity in geriatric versus nongeriatric (NG) adults during the initial 3 months following the December 2004 tsunami involving the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.
  
  
  METHODS
  This observational study was undertaken during the relief operation of tsunami. There were 12,784 survivors sheltered across 74 relief camps with 4,684 displaced survivors in Port Blair, and 8,100 nondisplaced survivors in Car Nicobar Island. All persons who accessed mental health assistance within the camps constituted the study sample. Diagnoses were made by qualified psychiatrists using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision. There were 438 adult patients, of which 75 (17%) were geriatric (60 years or older) and 363 (83%) were NG (aged 19-59 years).
  
  
  RESULTS
  The geriatric sample had greater levels of adjustment disorder than NG group. The two groups differed in terms of displacement as the elderly preferred to stay in their own locality. A comparison between displaced geriatric and NG groups showed that major depression was less common in the geriatric sample. However, in the nondisplaced group, geriatric subgroup showed a higher incidence of posttraumatic stress disorder. Within the geriatric sample, there were higher levels of adjustment disorder in the nondisplaced group whereas the displaced group suffered more depressive episodes and unspecified anxiety disorders.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Greater levels of adjustment disorder in geriatric group may indicate grief reaction and survivor guilt, especially in nondisplaced group. In addition, lower occurrences of depressive episodes in nondisplaced geriatric sample may indicate that the elderly need to be rehabilitated in their own habitats after major disasters.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore, India.
authors.forename: Biju
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Viswanath
authors.forename: Ami Sebastian
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Maroky
authors.forename: Suresh Bada
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Math
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: John
authors.forename: Vivek
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Benegal
authors.forename: Ameer
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hamza
authors.forename: Santosh K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Chaturvedi
mesh_terms: D000275:Adjustment Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004190:Disasters; D006117:Grief; D006167:Guilt; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology*; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D057192:Tsunamis