Predisaster trait anxiety and negative affect predict posttraumatic stress in youths after Hurricane Katrina.

Abstract

On the basis of theory and previous research, it was hypothesized that predisaster child trait anxiety would predict disaster-related posttraumatic stress symptoms and generalized anxiety disorder symptoms, even after controlling for the number of hurricane exposure events. Results support this hypothesis and further indicate that predisaster negative affect predicted disaster-related posttraumatic stress symptoms and generalized anxiety disorder symptoms. Also, Katrina-related posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms were predicted by the number of hurricane exposure events and sex (being female). Predisaster generalized anxiety disorder symptoms predicted postdisaster generalized anxiety disorder symptoms, and predisaster trait anxiety predicted postdisaster depressive symptoms. Findings are discussed in terms of their relevance for developing interventions to mitigate the impact of disasters in youths.

Psychiatric disorders and suicide attempts in Swedish survivors of the 2004 southeast Asia tsunami: a 5 year matched cohort study

“…We did a matched cohort study of Swedish inhabitants who arrived at Swedish airports from selected destinations in southeast Asia between Dec 26, 2004, and Jan 15,2005, and were confirmed alive through the register of the state police services (n=16068). The socioeconomic characteristics of the group returning from southeast Asia were considerably different from those of the general population (table 1).…”

“…13,14 Similarly, researchers have largely relied on retrospective self-reports on pre-disaster psychopathology. 6,7 There are a few exceptions, [15][16][17] and they generally show that pre-existing psychopathology influences post-disaster mental health. Thus, it awaits to be firmly established the extent to which disasters induce lasting risks of severe psychiatric disorders independently of underlying vulnerabilities.…”

“…14,29 For children, previous work has linked disaster exposure severity to more severe PTSD symptoms, but not depression or anxiety. 15,35 In this cohort we …”

Anxiety sensitivity and posttraumatic stress among traumatic event-exposed youth

“…Finally, in an effort to examine the unique association between AS and trauma symptoms, the incremental predictive validity (Haynes & Lench, 2003) of AS was examined relative to several factors associated with posttraumatic stress levels among youth, including gender (Kilpatrick et al, 2003), age (Kilpatrick et al, 2003), and time since traumatic event exposure (Zatzick et al, 2006). Further, in light of empirical evidence linking negative affectivity, or the temperamentally-based proclivity for experiencing negatively valenced affective states (e.g., anger; sadness; anxiety), to trauma symptoms among youth (e.g., Weems et al, 2007), this factor also was included as a covariate. Overall, this approach allowed for evaluation of the specific association between AS and trauma symptoms after controlling for variance accounted for by these theoreticallyrelevant factors.…”

No gene-by-environment interaction of BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and childhood maltreatment on anxiety sensitivity in a mixed race adolescent sample

“…Temperament or dispositional characteristics may be considered intermediate phenotypes for psychiatric disorders, reflecting sub-threshold clinical presentations (Altınbaş et al, 2015). Anxiety-related temperamental traits, such as anxiety sensitivity (AS) and trait anxiety (Eysenck, 1992; Reiss, Peterson, Gursky, & McNally, 1986), have consistently been found to be predictive of anxiety disorders and symptoms in youth (McLaughlin, Stewart, & Taylor, 2007; Muris, Schmidt, Merckelbach, & Schouten, 2001; Schmidt, Zvolensky, & Maner, 2006; Schmidt et al, 2010; Weems et al, 2007), particularly panic disorder symptoms (Hayward, Killen, Kraemer, & Taylor, 2000; Schmidt et al, 2006). Such temperamental traits are considered developmentally stable risk factors for anxiety (Garcia et al, 2013; Zavos, Gregory, & Eley, 2012; Zavos, Rijsdijk, & Eley, 2012).…”