Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The Prevalence of PTSD Symptoms and Depressive Symptoms and Related Predictors in Children and Adolescents 3 Years After the Ya’an Earthquake

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Child Psychiatry & Human Development Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to investigate the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and depressive symptoms in teenage survivors three years after the Ya’an earthquake to assess the differences between left-behind (LBC) and non-left-behind (non-LBC) children, and to explore predictors for PTSD symptoms and depressive symptoms. The participants were assessed using children’s revised impact of event scale (CRIES) and short mood and feelings questionnaire (SMFQ), after which t tests, Chi square tests, and a multivariate logistic regression were conducted to examine the differences in the LBC and identify the associated predictors. It was found that the PTSD and depressive symptom prevalences were 13.10% and 20.75%, with the LBC having a significantly higher prevalence than the non-LBC. The PTSD and depression symptoms tended to be highly comorbid (r = .52, p < .001). Being female, being aged less than 15, having siblings, being an LBC, and having higher exposure were found to be associated with PTSD and depressive symptoms.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Zeng EJ, Sliverstein LB (2011) China earthquake relief: participatory action work with children. School Psychol Int 32:498–511

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Neria Y, Nandi A, Galea S (2008) Post-traumatic stress disorder following disasters: a systematic review. Psychol Med 38:467–480

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. American Psychiatric Association (2001) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, 5th edn. American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  4. Lamprecht F, Sack M (2002) Posttraumatic stress disorder revisited. Psychosom Med 64:222–237

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Terr LC (1983) Chowchilla revisited: the effects of psychic trauma four years after a school-bus kidnapping. Am J Psychiat 140:1543–1550

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  6. Kolaitis G, Kotsopoulos J, Tsiantis J, Haritaki S, Rigizou F, Zacharaki L et al (2003) Posttraumatic stress reactions among children following the Athens earthquake of September 1999. Eur Child Adoles Psy 12:273–280

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Fairbank JA, Fairbank DW (2009) Epidemiology of child traumatic stress. Curr Psychiat Rep 11:289–295

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Bonanno GA, Brewin CR, Kaniasty K, La Greca AM (2010) Weighing the costs of disaster: consequences, risk, and resilience in individuals, families, and communities. Psychol Sci Public Interest 11:1–49

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Yan F, Chen Y, Jin W, Tang X, He J, Jiao M et al (2013) Analysis of prevalence of ptsd and its influencing factors among college students after the Wenchuan earthquake. Child Adol Psych Men 7:1

    Google Scholar 

  10. Wang L, Long D, Li Z, Armour C (2011) Posttraumatic stress disorder symptom structure in Chinese adolescents exposed to a deadly earthquake. J Abnorm Child Psychol 39:749–758

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Ziaaddini H, Nakhaee N, Behzadi K (2009) Prevalence and correlates of ptsd among high school students after the earthquake disaster in the City of Bam, Iran. Am J Applied Sci 6:130–132

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Salcioğlu E, Başoğlu M (2008) Psychological effects of earthquakes in children: prospects for brief behavioral treatment. World J Pediatr 4:165–172

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Zhang Z, Ran MS, Li YH, Ou GJ, Gong RR, Li RH et al (2012) Prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among adolescents after the Wenchuan earthquake in China. Psychol Med 42:1687–1693

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Ma X, Liu X, Hu X, Qiu C, Wang Y, Wang Q et al (2011) Risk indicators for post-traumatic stress disorder in adolescents exposed to the 5.12 Wenchuan earthquake in China. Psychiat Res 189:385–391

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Trickey D, Siddaway AP, Meiser-Stedman R, Serpell L, Field AP (2012) A meta-analysis of risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder in children and adolescents. Clin Psychol Rev 32:122–138

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Fan F, Zhang Y, Yang Y, Mo L, Liu X (2011) Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety among adolescents following the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake in China. J Trauma Stress 24:44–53

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Liu M, Wang L, Shi Z, Zhang Z, Zhan K, Shen J (2011) Mental health problems among children one-year after Sichuan earthquake in China: a follow-up study. Plos One 6:e14706

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  18. Alisic E, Jongmans MJ, Van WF, Kleber RJ (2011) Building child trauma theory from longitudinal studies: a meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev 31:736–747

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Ye YL, Liu Y, Chen M, Zhang JH, Yang C, Liu XX et al (2011) Trajectory and the related factors of PTSD in secondary school students after earthquake. Chin J Sch Health 32:166–167

    Google Scholar 

  20. Guo J, Wu P, Tian DH, Wang XH, Zhang WJ, Zhang XL et al (2014) Post-traumatic stress disorder among adult survivors of the Wenchuan Earthquake in China: a repeated cross-sectional study. J Anxiety Disord 28:75–82

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Wu D, Tang J (2002) Morality and personality of children in single and non-single child family. Chin Ment Health J 16:454–456

    Google Scholar 

  22. Zhao K, Zhao G (1996) Mental health characteristics among only-child students. Chin J Sch Health 17:394–397

    Google Scholar 

  23. Wang L, Feng Z, Yang G, Yang Y, Dai Q, Zhao M (2015) The epidemiological characteristics of depressive symptoms in the left-behind children and adolescents of Chongqing in China. J Affect Disord 177:36–41

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Guo J, Chen L, Wang X, Liu Y, Chui CH, He H et al (2012) The relationship between internet addiction and depression among migrant children and left-behind children in China. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw 15:585–590

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Zhou FL, Duan CR (2006) Literature review on studies on left behind children [in Chinese]. Popul Res 3:60–65

    Google Scholar 

  26. Armsden GC, Greenberg MT (1987) The inventory of parent and peer attachment: individual differences and their relationship to psychological well-being in adolescence. J Youth Adoles 16:427–454

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Vanore M, Mazzucato V, Siegel M (2015) ‘left behind’ but not left alone: parental migration & the psychosocial health of children in Moldova. Soc Sci Med 132:252–260

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Cheng J, Sun YH (2015) Depression and anxiety among left-behind children in China: a systematic review. Child Care Health Dev 41:15–523

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Qu Y, Jiang H, Zhang N, Wang D, Guo L (2015) Prevalence of mental disorders in 6–16-year-old students in Sichuan province, China. Int J Environ Res Pub Health 5:5090–5107

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Shen M, Gao J, Liang Z, Wang Y, Du Y, Stallones L (2015) Parental migration patterns and risk of depression and anxiety disorder among rural children aged 10–18 years in China: a cross-sectional study. BMJ Open 12:e7802

    Google Scholar 

  31. Gao Y, Li LP, Kim JH, Congdon N, Lau J, Griffiths S (2010) The impact of parental migration on health status and health behaviors among left behind adolescent school children in China. Bmc Public Health 10:1–10

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Fan F, Su L, Gill MK, Birmaher B (2010) Emotional and behavioral problems of Chinese left-behind children: a preliminary study. Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr 45:655–664

    Google Scholar 

  33. Wei Q (2011) Comparison of physical constitution between left-behind and non left-behind children in disaster area of earthquake. Chinese Journal of School Health 32:321–323

    Google Scholar 

  34. Zhang XR, Guo HX, Yang ZL (2015) Mental health among preschool children who had experienced lushan earthquake. Chin J Sch Health 36:1634–1637

    Google Scholar 

  35. Jiang X, Jian HE, Wang C, Pan WM, Keng LI, Kang FY (2013) Influence of migrant working parents on post-traumatic stress disorder of their left-behind children. J Lanzhou Univ Med Sci 39:65–67

    Google Scholar 

  36. Xu J, He Y (2012) Psychological health and coping strategy among survivors in the year following the 2008 wenchuan earthquake. Psychiatr Clin Neurosci 66:210–219

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Xu J, Liao Q (2011) Prevalence and predictors of posttraumatic growth among adult survivors one year following 2008 sichuan earthquake. J Affect Disord 133:274–280

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Cheng PX, Cao FL (2009) Reliability and validity of the short mood and feelings questionnaire in Chinese adolescents. Chin Ment Health J 23:60–62

    Google Scholar 

  39. Angold A, Costello EJ (1995) The development of a questionnaire for use in epidemiological studies of depression in children and adolescents. Int J Met Psychiat Res 5:237–249

    Google Scholar 

  40. Perrin S, Meiserstedman R, Smith P (2005) The children’s revised impact of event scale (CRIES): validity as a screening instrument for PTSD. Behav Cogn Psychother 33:487–498

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Lau JT, Yeung NC, Yu XN, Zhang J, Mak WW, Lui WW (2013) Validation of the Chinese version of the children’s revised impact of event scale (cries) among Chinese adolescents in the aftermath of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008. Compr Psychiatr 54:83–90

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Jing L, Chen T, Wang D, Zhu C, Situ M, Fang H et al (2010) The reliability and validity research of the children’s revised impact of event scale of Chinese edition (in Chinese). Chin J Behav Med Brain Sci 19:654–657

    Google Scholar 

  43. Ge Y, Wu J, Sun X, Zhang K (2011) Enhanced mismatch negativity in adolescents with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Int J Psychophysiol 79:231–235

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Liu X, Yang Y, Yuan P, Zhan X, Han Y, Cao Y et al (2010) A study of the relationship between mental health and menstrual abnormalities in female middle school students from post-earthquake Wenchuan. Biosci Trends 4:4–8

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Liu ZY, Yang YF, Ye YL, Zen ZQ, Xiang YJ, Yuan P (2010) One-year follow-up study of post-traumatic stress disorder among adolescents following the Wenchuan earthquake in China. Biosci Trends 4:96–102

    Google Scholar 

  46. Pan X, Liu W, Deng G, Liu T, Yan J, Tang Y et al (2015) Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety among junior high school students in worst-hit areas 3 years after the Wenchuan earthquake in China. Asia Pac J Public Health 27:1985–1994

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Kadak MT, Nasiroglu S, Aydin A, Nasirotlu S, Aydin A, Nasiroglu S, Aydin A, Nasirotlu S, Aydin A (2013) Prevalence of PTSD, Depression and Anxiety Symptoms among Adolescents 6 Months after Van-Ercis Earthquake 2011. European Psychiatry. Conference: 21st European Congress of Psychiatry, EPA 28

  48. Derivois D, Cénat JM, Joseph NE, Karray A, Chahraoui K (2017) Prevalence and determinants of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression symptoms in street children survivors of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, four years after. Child Abuse Neglect 67:174

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Price M, Van SK (2015) Examination of the interrelations between the factors of ptsd, major depression, and generalized anxiety disorder in a heterogeneous trauma-exposed sample using dsm 5 criteria. J Affect Disord 186:149

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Acharya S, Bhatta DN, Assannangkornchai S (2017) Post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms among children of kathmandu 1 year after the 2015 earthquake in nepal. Disaster Med Public 8:1–7

    Google Scholar 

  51. Takeo F, Junko Y, Hiroaki H, Hirofumi M, Keizo N, Makiko O (2016) Symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder among young children 2 years after the great east Japan earthquake. Disaster Med Public 11:207–215

    Google Scholar 

  52. Southwick SM, Charney DS (2012) The science of resilience: implications for the prevention and treatment of depression. Science 338:79–82

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Acierno R, Ruggiero KJ, Galea S, Resnick HS, Koenen K, Roitzsch J et al (2007) Psychological sequelae resulting from the 2004 florida hurricanes: implications for postdisaster intervention. Am J Public Health 97:S103–S108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  54. Waters TE, Ruiz SK, Roisman GI (2016) Origins of secure base script knowledge and the developmental construction of attachment representations. Child Dev 88:198–201

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  55. Esch AK (2013) Disorganized attachment and trauma in children. Social Work Master’s Clinical Research Papers. 174

  56. Wang L, Feng Z, Yang G, Yang Y, Dai Q, Hu C et al (2015) The epidemiological characteristics of depressive symptoms in the left-behind children and adolescents of Chongqing in china. J Affect Disord 177:36–41

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  57. Zhao F, Yu G (2016) Parental migration and rural left-behind children’s mental health in China: a meta-analysis based on mental health test. J Child Fam Stud 25:3462–3472

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

Funding were supported by the Major Bidding Program of the National Social Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 12ZD217), the Major Program of the Social Science Foundation of Sichuan (Grant No. SC13ZD06), the propaganda department of people’s Republic of China (Grant No. 2016zybw03) and Chinese National Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. 71673032).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Teacher Education and Psychology, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610068, China

    Yuchang Jin

  2. Management School, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China

    Huaqiang Deng

  3. Chengdu University of Information Techology, Chengdu, 610225, China

    Junxiu An

  4. Institute of Emergency Management and Reconstruction in Post-disaster, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, China

    Jiuping Xu

Authors
  1. Yuchang Jin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Huaqiang Deng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Junxiu An
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Jiuping Xu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jiuping Xu.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Jin, Y., Deng, H., An, J. et al. The Prevalence of PTSD Symptoms and Depressive Symptoms and Related Predictors in Children and Adolescents 3 Years After the Ya’an Earthquake. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 50, 300–307 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-018-0840-6

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-018-0840-6

Keywords

Search

Navigation