title: Association of PTSD symptoms with asthma attacks among hurricane Katrina survivors.
abstract: The relationship between posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and asthma in the wake of natural disasters is poorly understood. Using pre- and postdisaster data (N = 405) from the Resilience in Survivors of Katrina (RISK) project, we examined associations between PTSD symptoms, measured by the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R), and self-reported postdisaster asthma attacks. A 1-point increase in the IES-R avoidance score, which corresponded to one standard deviation change in this sample, was associated with double the odds of reporting an asthma attack or episode since the hurricane, 95% CI Revise spacing among characters: [1.22, 4.16]. Association with hyperarousal and intrusion symptoms was null. Further research using objective measures of asthma morbidity is needed; nevertheless, these findings may help inform postdisaster health services delivery and predisaster mitigation planning.
authors.affiliation: Center for Population and Development Studies, Harvard School of Public Health, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: Mariana C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Arcaya
authors.forename: Sarah R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Lowe
authors.forename: Jean E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Rhodes
authors.forename: Mary C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Waters
authors.forename: S V
authors.initials: SV
authors.lastname: Subramanian
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001249:Asthma / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001362:Avoidance Learning; D015897:Comorbidity; D055867:Cyclonic Storms; D004190:Disasters; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055820:New Orleans / Q000453:epidemiology; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011203:Poverty; D015995:Prevalence; D055500:Resilience, Psychological; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology*; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult