title: Posttraumatic stress disorder according to DSM-5 and DSM-IV diagnostic criteria: a comparison in a sample of Congolese ex-combatants.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Compared to DSM-IV, the criteria for diagnosing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been modified in DSM-5.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The first aim of this study was to examine how these modifications impact rates of PTSD in a sample of Congolese ex-combatants. The second goal of this study was to investigate whether PTSD symptoms were associated with perpetrator-related acts or victim-related traumatic events.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-five male ex-combatants in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo were interviewed. Both the DSM-IV and the DSM-5 PTSD symptom criteria were assessed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The DSM-5 symptom criteria yielded a PTSD rate of 50% (n=47), whereas the DSM-IV symptom criteria were met by 44% (n=42). If the DSM-5 would be set as the current "gold standard," then DSM-IV would have produced more false negatives (8%) than false positives (3%). A minority of participants (19%, n=18) indicated an event during which they were involved as a perpetrator as their most stressful event. RESULTS of a regression analysis (R (2)=0.40) showed that, after accounting for the number of types of traumatic events, perpetrated violent acts were not associated with the symptom severity of PTSD.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings demonstrate that more diagnostic cases were produced with the DSM-5 diagnostic rules than were dropped resulting in an increase in PTSD rates compared to the DSM-IV system. The missing association between PTSD symptoms and perpetrated violent acts might be explained by a potential fascinating and excited perception of these acts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Ulm, Ulm, Germany; Susanne.Schaal@gmx.de.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schaal
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.
authors.forename: Anke
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Koebach
authors.affiliation: World Bank Kigali, Kigali, Rwanda.
authors.forename: Harald
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hinkel
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Elbert
keywords: Congo; DSM-5; DSM-IV; PTSD; ex-combatants; violence