Abstract
BackgroundLittle is known about posttraumatic stress (PTS) reactions in bereaved individuals following loss in disaster who were not directly exposed to disaster. The aim of the present study was to examine the course of PTS up to three years after losing relatives in the MS Estonia ferry disaster, one of the worst maritime disasters in modern times.MethodsSeven postal surveys were sent out over three years post-disaster. The respondents were invited and added consecutively during the three years and 938 relatives participated in one or more of the surveys, representing 89% of the MS Estonia’s Swedish victims. The survey included the Impact of Event Scale (IES) to measure PTS. Latent growth curve modeling was used to analyze PTS over time.ResultsThe majority of bereaved individuals had high levels of PTS. At three years post-loss, 62% of the respondents scored above the recommended cut-off value on the IES. Over time, PTS symptoms declined, but initially high symptoms of PTS were associated with a slower recovery rate.ConclusionThe present finding suggests that being an indirectly-exposed disaster-bereaved close-relative can lead to very high levels of PTS which are sustained for several years.
Highlights
The unexpected and sudden loss of a family member in disaster is one of the most traumatic events a person can experience and often leads to negative long-term effects on mental health [1]
High rates of posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms have been reported in individuals bereaved by disaster [2,3,4], the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) following this type of traumatic loss varies [5]
A recent study on the trajectories of PTS found that 16% of individuals displayed chronic PTS six years after a natural disaster [7] and the loss of a family member was a strong predictor of long-term PTS
Summary
The unexpected and sudden loss of a family member in disaster is one of the most traumatic events a person can experience and often leads to negative long-term effects on mental health [1]. The difference in long-term PTS between bereaved and non-bereaved survivors appeared to arise from a recovery from the PTS reactions by non-bereaved survivors during the first year, but there was little change in the reactions of the bereaved survivors. These findings, as well as other research [9, 10], show that when PTS symptoms are not resolved within the first few years there is a risk of long-term problems for those exposed to disaster, which is in accordance with the theory of PTSD maintenance [11]. The aim of the present study was to examine the course of PTS up to three years after losing relatives in the MS Estonia ferry disaster, one of the worst maritime disasters in modern times
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