PREDICTORS OF LONG-TERM PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH AMONG INDIVIDUALS AFFECTED BY THE CHERNOBYL ACCIDENT

Abstract

ISEE-289 Abstract: While there is no strong evidence that the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986 has led to serious physical health effects other than childhood thyroid cancer, there is considerable concern about psychological health problems associated with this event. We conducted a comprehensive psychological health assessment among individuals who have previously participated in a case-control study of childhood leukemia in the Gomel and Mogilev regions of Belarus. The Gomel region was by far the most contaminated area in the former Soviet Union, but parts of the Mogilev region were also affected by high radionuclide contamination. Participants include 416 individuals from these regions who, in addition to contamination status of their residence, also differed with respect to having a family member with childhood leukemia. All participants completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire, which included information on demographics, life stressors, life style factors and economics. General and psychological functioning was assessed using the Russian language version of the SF-36 Health Survey and the 53-item Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). We observed striking differences in general and psychological health between participants from the Gomel and Mogilev regions. Compared to Mogilev residents, participants from the Gomel region had significantly (p > .05) lower scores (i.e., poorer functioning) on all but one (bodily pain) subscales of the SF-36. We also observed significantly (p > .05) greater reported symptoms among Gomel residents on all subscales of the BSI, as well as the global BSI score (p > .001). These differences between regions were still apparent when females and males were examined separately. Contrary to expectations, SF-36 and BSI scores were similar for participants with and without a family member with childhood leukemia. Results from linear regression analyses indicated that, while factors such as residence (R2=0.02) and concern about adverse Chernobyl-related health effects in children (R2=0.02) were significantly predictive of psychological health (measured as the global BSI score), number of reported daily hassles was by far the strongest predictor of psychological health in this populstion (R2=0.22). Our results indicate that, while there are substantial differences in psychological functioning between residents of the Gomel and Mogilev regions in Belarus, ′current life-stressors are much more predictive of psychological health than measures related to the Chernobyl accident.