Abstract
BackgroundAn earthquake struck Yushu in Qinghai province of China on April 14, 2010, causing 2698 deaths and 12,135 injuries.The present study aimed to assess the health status, and associated determinants, of child survivors in the epicenter of the Yushu earthquake 6 years after the event.MethodsA cross-sectional survey was performed among students from two junior schools in Yushu County. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA, Wilcoxon rank sum tests, Kruskal-Wallis H tests and stepwise linear regression analysis were used for data analysis.ResultsThe mean scores onmental component summary (MCS)and physical component summary (PCS) were 42.13 (SD 7.32) and 42.04 (SD 8.07), respectively. Lower PCS in the aftermath of an earthquake was associated with being trapped/in danger, injured to self, receiving no escape training while lowerMCS in the aftermath of an earthquake was associated with a lower grade level, not living with parents, fear during the earthquake, death in the family, and not receiving psychological counseling after the earthquake.ConclusionsIn conclusion, the results of the present study help to expand our knowledge regarding the health status of child survivors 6 years after the Yushu earthquake. Our study provides evidence-based suggestions for specific long-term health interventions in such vulnerable populations.
Highlights
An earthquake struck Yushu in Qinghai province of China on April 14, 2010, causing 2698 deaths and 12,135 injuries.The present study aimed to assess the health status, and associated determinants, of child survivors in the epicenter of the Yushu earthquake 6 years after the event
Background can natural disasters cause a devastating loss of life, homes, and livelihoods in an instant, they can impose lingering threats to the physical and mental health of the survivors who must cope with post-disaster adversities for many years [1, 2]
We found that adolescent survivors of the Yushu earthquake had worse physical component summary (PCS) and mean scores onmental component summary (MCS) scores compared to those for the general adolescent population in China [21]
Summary
An earthquake struck Yushu in Qinghai province of China on April 14, 2010, causing 2698 deaths and 12,135 injuries.The present study aimed to assess the health status, and associated determinants, of child survivors in the epicenter of the Yushu earthquake 6 years after the event. Previous studies have assessed the impact of disasters in terms of mortality, morbidity, depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) within a 1–36-month period following the disaster [9,10,11,12,13,14,15] Most of these studies have focused on adults; only a few have examined the health status of child survivors [16, 17]. No previous study has evaluated the health status of child survivorsseveral years after an earthquake
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
