Predictors and prognostic impact of post-traumatic stress disorder after the great East Japan earthquake in patients with cardiovascular disease.
BACKGROUND
We examined the prevalence, predictors and prognostic impact of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the Great East Japan Earthquake in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the CHART-2 study. METHODS AND RESULTS: The prevalence of PTSD was 14.7% at 6 months after the Earthquake. Female sex, experiencing the Tsunami, property loss, poverty, and insomnia medication use were associated with PTSD. The patients with PTSD more frequently experienced a composite of death, acute myocardial infarction, stroke and heart failure (18.5% vs. 15.0%, P=0.035).


CONCLUSIONS
PTSD was frequent in CVD patients after the Earthquake and had an adverse prognostic impact.
Departments of Cardiovascular Medicine and Evidence-based Cardiovascular Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine.
Takeo
T
Onose
Kotaro
K
Nochioka
Yasuhiko
Y
Sakata
Masanobu
M
Miura
Soichiro
S
Tadaki
Ryoichi
R
Ushigome
Takeshi
T
Yamauchi
Kenjiro
K
Sato
Kanako
K
Tsuji
Ruri
R
Abe
Satoshi
S
Miyata
Jun
J
Takahashi
Hiroaki
H
Shimokawa
D000368:Aged; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000401:mortality*; D055866:Earthquakes; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000401:mortality*