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Prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among Asylum Seekers in Italy: A Population-Based Survey in Sicily

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Abstract

Italian coasts are docking berths for the majority of boats carrying asylum seekers coming from Middle East and Sub-Saharan countries. These people escaped from their home countries in an effort to survive war, hunger and torture. These experiences might have affected their mental health, which became more endangered during their journey. The main aim of our work was to assess the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in asylum seekers in a first aid facility, where immigrants were aided after their arrival. Thus, we designed a cross-sectional survey with paper-and-pen questionnaires. The setting was the C.A.R.A. (Centro Accoglienza Richiedenti Asilo) in Mineo (Sicily). Participants were asked for general information. They also completed the PTSD Checklist of the DSM-IV (PCL-C) and the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ). We collected 140 questionnaires and the PCL-C was completed by 98 residents; 44% of responders were considered affected by PTSD. Although we used a conservative cut-off, PTSD prevalence was found to be much higher than that in the general population.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to acknowledge Italian Red Cross, Local Branch of Catania (Italy), for their logistic support in conducting this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Psychiatry Unit, University of Catania, Via Santa Sofia 78, 95123, Catania, Italy

    Alessandro Rodolico, Carmen Concerto, Eugenio Aguglia & Maria S. Signorelli

  2. U.O.C. Clinica Psichiatrica, A.O.U. Policlinico-Vittorio Emanuele, Presidio “G. Rodolico”, Catania, Italy

    Alessandro Rodolico, Carmen Concerto, Eugenio Aguglia & Maria S. Signorelli

  3. Department of Mental Health and Addiction (DSM-DP), Mental Health Centre (CSM) of Scandiano, Reggio Emilia, Italy

    Noemi Vaccino

  4. Italian Red Cross, Local Branch of Catania, Catania, Italy

    Maria C. Riso

Authors
  1. Alessandro Rodolico
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  2. Noemi Vaccino
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  3. Maria C. Riso
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  4. Carmen Concerto
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  5. Eugenio Aguglia
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  6. Maria S. Signorelli
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Correspondence to Alessandro Rodolico.

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Rodolico, A., Vaccino, N., Riso, M.C. et al. Prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Among Asylum Seekers in Italy: A Population-Based Survey in Sicily. J Immigrant Minority Health 22, 634–638 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-019-00948-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-019-00948-9

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