Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and obesity share common risk factors; however, the effect of obesity on recovery from PTSD has not been assessed. We examined the association between body mass index (BMI) and recovery from PTSD after the Great East Japan Earthquake. We analyzed 4356 men and women with probable PTSD aged ≥ 16 years who were living in evacuation zones owing to the radiation accident in Fukushima, Japan. Recovery from probable PTSD was defined as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-specific scores < 44. Using Poisson regression with robust error variance adjusted for confounders, we compared the prevalence ratios (PRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for this outcome in 2013 and 2014. Compared with point estimates for normal weight (BMI: 18.5–24.9 kg/m2), especially in 2013, those for underweight (BMI: < 18.5 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI: ≥ 30.0 kg/m2) tended to slightly increase and decrease, respectively, for recovery from probable PTSD. The multivariate-adjusted PRs (95% CIs) for underweight and obesity were 1.08 (0.88–1.33) and 0.85 (0.68–1.06), respectively, in 2013 and 1.02 (0.82–1.26) and 0.87 (0.69–1.09), respectively, in 2014. The results of the present study showed that obesity may be a useful predictor for probable PTSD recovery. Obese victims with PTSD would require more intensive support and careful follow-up for recovery.
Highlights
Abbreviations body mass index (BMI) Body mass index posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-specific (PCL-S) Post-traumatic stress disorder checklists-specific prevalence ratios (PRs) Prevalence ratios confidence intervals (CIs) Confidence intervals SD Standard deviation Great East Japan earthquake (GEJE) The great east japan earthquake IL Interleukin tumor necrosis factor (TNF) Tumor necrosis factor
This study showed that BMI, especially obesity, predicts probable PTSD recovery in one year later
The BMI in the participants who did not recover from probable PTSD after one year was not associated with later recovery from probable PTSD
Summary
Abbreviations BMI Body mass index PTSD Post-traumatic stress disorder PCL-S Post-traumatic stress disorder checklists-specific PRs Prevalence ratios CIs Confidence intervals SD Standard deviation GEJE The great east japan earthquake IL Interleukin TNF Tumor necrosis factor. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in this population, defined as body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/ m2, increased dramatically after the disaster[1], from 32.8% and 30.5% to 42.6% and 35.9% in evacuated men and women, respectively. Previous studies reported a high prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms (men: 18.6%, women: 24.9%), defined as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist-specific (PCL-S) scores ≥ 44 in 2012, almost one year after the d isaster[2,3,4]. This study examined the association between BMI and recovery from PTSD by longitudinal data from evacuees who lived in the evacuation zone owing to the nuclear accidents in Fukushima in 2011
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