Abstract
BackgroundTraumatic stress may arise from various incidents often leading to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The lifetime prevalence of PTSD is estimated at 1% – 2% in Western Europe, 6% – 9% in North America and at just over 10% in countries exposed to long-term violence. In South Africa, the lifetime prevalence for PTSD in the general population is estimated at 2.3%.AimTo examine the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptomatology and related psychological functioning in a community sample of adolescents.SettingLow-socioeconomic communities in KwaZulu-Natal.MethodsHome interviews with adolescents and their maternal caregivers were used to collect the data using standardised instruments. Adolescents completed the Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children; Children’s Depression Inventory; Children’s Somatization Inventory; and Revised Children’s Manifest Anxiety Scale. The Child Behaviour Checklist was completed by the caregivers. The sample comprised Grade 7 (n = 256) and Grade 10 (n = 68) learners. Sixty-five percent of the sample was female, and ages ranged from 9 to 18 (M = 13.11, s.d. = 1.54).ResultsAlmost 6% of the sample endorsed PTSD and an additional 4% of the participants had clinically significant traumatic stress symptomatology. There was a significant, large, positive correlation between posttraumatic stress and anxiety, and medium positive correlations between posttraumatic stress and depression and somatic symptoms.ConclusionPosttraumatic stress symptomatology can be debilitating, often co-occurring with symptoms of depression, anxiety and somatic complications. This may lead to long-term academic, social and emotional consequences in this vulnerable group.
Highlights
Traumatic stress may arise from a variety of incidents, including artificial or natural disasters such as earthquakes and motor vehicle accidents or community violence such as gang violence, neighbourhood gun warfare, rape, school violence and victimisation.[1,2] Traumatic stress severely impacts personal functioning, interpersonal relationships and employment, and it is associated with a variety of other psychological conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression and somatisation.[1,2] many individuals exposed to trauma experience symptoms of PTSD that do not always meet diagnostic thresholds.[2]
This widespread difference in prevalence is attributable to the variation in the exposure to traumatic events according to these authors,[3] but it is well-known that trauma exposure is only one, albeit necessary, factor in the development of PTSD
The lifetime prevalence rates of PTSD in the general South African population have been found to be 2.3% for all ages and 1.8% for ages between 18 and 34 with the 12-month prevalence rate being 0.6% – 0.7%; sex, age and education were largely unrelated to PTSD risk.[6] http://www.sajpsychiatry.org
Summary
Traumatic stress may arise from a variety of incidents, including artificial or natural disasters such as earthquakes and motor vehicle accidents or community violence such as gang violence, neighbourhood gun warfare, rape, school violence and victimisation.[1,2] Traumatic stress severely impacts personal functioning, interpersonal relationships and employment, and it is associated with a variety of other psychological conditions, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression and somatisation.[1,2] many individuals exposed to trauma experience symptoms of PTSD that do not always meet diagnostic thresholds.[2] These people, who suffer debilitating symptoms at a sub-threshold level, are considered to have posttraumatic stress symptomatology (PTSS) for the purposes of this study. In South Africa, the lifetime prevalence for PTSD in the general population is estimated at 2.3%
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