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Mental health and alcohol problems among Estonian cleanup workers 24 years after the Chernobyl accident

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Abstract

Purpose

To study the long-term mental health consequences of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear accident among cleanup workers from Estonia.

Methods

In 2010, 614 Estonian Chernobyl cleanup workers and 706 geographically and age-matched population-based controls completed a mail survey that included self-rated health, the Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (PCL), alcohol symptoms (AUDIT), and scales measuring depressive, anxiety, agoraphobia, fatigue, insomnia, and somatization symptoms. Respondents were dichotomized into high (top quartile) and low symptom groups on each measure.

Results

Logistic regression analysis detected significant differences between cleanup workers and controls on all measures even after adjustment for ethnicity, education, marital status, and employment status. The strongest difference was found for somatization, with cleanup workers being three times more likely than controls to score in the top quartile (OR = 3.28, 95 % CI 2.39–4.52), whereas for alcohol problems the difference was half as large (OR = 1.52, 95 % CI 1.16–1.99). Among cleanup workers, arrival at Chernobyl in 1986 (vs. later) was associated with sleep problems, somatization, and symptoms of agoraphobia.

Conclusion

The toll of cleanup work was evident 24 years after the Chernobyl accident among Estonian cleanup workers indicating the need for focused mental health interventions.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by grants from the Estonian Science Foundation (JD152), from the Estonian Ministry of Science and Education (SF0940026s07), and from the Estonian Research Council (IUT5-1). We are grateful to Prof. Evelyn Bromet for her helpful comments on earlier versions of this paper.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, National Institute for Health Development, Hiiu 42, 11619, Tallinn, Estonia

    Kaia Laidra, Kaja Rahu, Mare Tekkel & Mall Leinsalu

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Tartu, Raja 31, 50417, Tartu, Estonia

    Anu Aluoja

  3. Stockholm Centre for Health and Social Change (SCOHOST), Södertörn University, 14189, Huddinge, Sweden

    Mall Leinsalu

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  1. Kaia Laidra
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Correspondence to Kaia Laidra.

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Laidra, K., Rahu, K., Tekkel, M. et al. Mental health and alcohol problems among Estonian cleanup workers 24 years after the Chernobyl accident. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 50, 1753–1760 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-015-1102-6

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