title: The mental health sequelae of traumatic head injury in South Vietnamese ex-political detainees who survived torture.
abstract: Little is known about the relationship between traumatic head injury (THI) and psychiatric morbidity in torture survivors. We examine the relationship between THI and depression, PTSD, post-concussive syndrome (PCS), disability and poor health status in Vietnamese ex-political detainees who survived incarceration in Vietnamese re-education camps. A community sample of ex-political detainees (n=337) and a non-THI, non-ex-detainee comparison group (n=82) were surveyed. Seventy-eight percent of the ex-political detainees had experienced THI; 90.6% of the ex-political detainees and 3.6% of the comparison group had experienced 7 or more trauma events. Depression and PTSD were greater in ex-detainees than in the comparison group (40.9% vs 23.2% and 13.4% vs 0%). Dose-effect relationships for THI and trauma/torture in the ex-political detainee group were significant. Logistic regression in the pooled sample of ex-detainees and the comparison group confirmed the independent impact of THI from trauma/torture on psychiatric morbidity (OR for PTSD=22.4; 95% CI: 3.0-165.8). These results demonstrate important effects of THI on depression and PTSD in Vietnamese ex-detainees who have survived torture.
authors: Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address: rmollica@partners.org.
authors: Richard F
authors: RF
authors: Mollica
authors: Center for Biostatistics in AIDS Research, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address: miriam.chernoff@juno.com.
authors: Miriam C
authors: MC
authors: Chernoff
authors: University of Connecticut, School of Social Work, West Hartford, Connecticut. Electronic address: megan.berthold@uconn.edu.
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Megan Berthold
authors: Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address: jlavelle@partners.org.
authors: James
authors: J
authors: Lavelle
authors: Ewha W. University, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Ewha Brain Institute, Seoul, South Korea. Electronic address: inkylyoo@ewha.ac.kr.
authors: In Kyoon
authors: IK
authors: Lyoo
authors: Interdepartmental Program in Neuroscience, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. Electronic address: Perry.Renshaw@hsc.utah.edu.
authors: Perry
authors: P
authors: Renshaw
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology*; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011057:Politics; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology*; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D014104:Torture / Q000523:psychology*; D014744:Vietnam