Post-traumatic Stress Reactions in Children after two large Earthquakes in Iceland

Abstract

The aim of the study was to explore the psychological consequences of two earthquakes in Iceland in two probability samples of children aged 10-15 years (67 exposed and 73 nonexposed). Three months after the earthquakes, children answered demographic questions, stressor questions, and completed the Child Posttraumatic Stress Reaction Index (CPTS-RI), the Trauma Symptom Checklist (TSC) and the Crisis Support Scale (CSS). Thirty-three percent of the exposed group and 6% of the control group fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for PTSD. Experiences of great horror during the earthquake and thoughts about future earthquakes explained 49% of the variance in PTSD. Wish for relocation, arousal, and avoidance symptoms predicted psychological distress, as measured by the TSC total score, explaining 65% of the variance. The exposed children reported more emotional support than controls immediately after the earthquake, but not at three months post earthquake. Exposed children who did not receive crisis intervention but reported that they would have wanted it had significantly more PTSD symptoms than all other groups, suggesting that all exposed children should be offered crisis intervention and receive continuous attention from adults even after a moderate disaster.

The impact of the Canterbury earthquakes on successful school leaving for adolescents

“…In addition to unique disaster and local environmental factors, study design is also likely to be important. For example, exposure and temporal gradients have typically been seen with more pronounced adverse effects for those with greatest exposure to the disaster and for those in closer temporal proximity, 6–11 although some authors have also highlighted delayed effects without an improvement in symptoms over time 12–15 . Studies with the ability to make comparisons with pre‐disaster rates of mental illness are rare as most studies are designed opportunistically following disasters.…”

Sixteen-year follow-up of childhood avalanche survivors

“…Disaster agent characteristics such as severity of the event and proximity to the disaster, loss of a loved one or friend (Furr et al, 2010 ), and injury (Adams et al, 2014 ) have been associated with PTSD symptoms in children. Furthermore, children's subjective experience of the disaster such as perceived life threat and distress at the time of the disaster has been found to yield medium-to-large associations with PTSD symptoms (Bodvarsdottir, Elklit, & Gudmundsdottir, 2006 ; Furr et al, 2010 ).…”

Sequential population study of the impact of earthquakes on the emotional and behavioural well‐being of 4‐year‐olds in Canterbury, New Zealand

“…While most studies have focused on adults, increasing evidence suggests that exposure to large‐scale natural disasters predicts enduring mental health problems in children and adolescents. Although most children and adolescents are resilient, around 20% will suffer significant psychological effects . Common post‐disaster stress reactions in children include depression, anxiety, complicated grief, substance abuse and post‐traumatic stress disorder.…”