title: Analysis of changes in traumatic symptoms and daily life activity of children affected by the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami over time.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  On March 11, 2011, Japan was struck by a massive earthquake and tsunami. The tsunami caused tremendous damage and traumatized a number of people, including children. This study aimed to compare traumatic symptoms and daily life activity among children 20 months after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami with those observed after 8 months.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study comprised two groups. The first comprised 12,524 kindergarten, elementary school, and junior high school children in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, who were evaluated 8 months after the disaster. The second comprised 10,597 children from the same place who were evaluated 20 months after the disaster. The Post Traumatic Stress Symptoms for Children 15 items (PTSSC-15), a self-completion questionnaire on traumatic symptoms, and a questionnaire on children's daily life were distributed to the children. An effective response was obtained from 11,639 (92.9%, 8 months after) and 10,597 (86.9%, 20 months after) children.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The PTSSC-15 score was significantly higher in junior high school girls than in boys. The PTSSC-15 score was significantly higher in 4th-6th grade girls than in boys after 8 months. Elementary and junior high school children evaluated after 20 months had a significantly lower PTSSC-15 score than those evaluated after 8 months. The number of children having breakfast was significantly higher after 8 months than that after 20 months. In both the groups, children of all grades who had breakfast had a significantly lower PTSSC-15 score than those who did not have breakfast.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that traumatic symptoms and daily life activity of children who survived the earthquake and tsunami improved over time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Masahide
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Usami
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshitaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Iwadare
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Kyota
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Mental Health, Imperial Gift Foundation, Aiiku Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masaki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kodaira
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Hirokage
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ushijima
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Maiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Harada
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Hiromi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Kohnodai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshinori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Mental Health, Imperial Gift Foundation, Aiiku Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Saito
mesh_terms: D000203:Activities of Daily Living / Q000523:psychology; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004190:Disasters; D055866:Earthquakes; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D057192:Tsunamis