Citation

Wu F, Meng WY, Hao CZ, Zhu LL, Chen DQ, Lin LY, Wen H. Traffic Injury Prev. 2016; 17(2): 159-163.

Affiliation

Emergency Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University , 109 Xueyuan West Road, Wenzhou 325027 , China.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/15389588.2015.1050719

PMID

26558957

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Road traffic accidents are the leading health threat to children and cause significant long-term mental health problems. This study aimed to characterize post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children suffering from road traffic injury (RTI) in Wenzhou, China.

METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of 537 children (aged 1 to 13 years old) with RTI. The epidemiological features, PTSD incidence, clinical manifestation, and risk factors were analyzed based on a customized PTSD risk-factor questionnaire. The outcome factors were also evaluated by means of the logistic regression method.

RESULTS: The PTSD incidence was 24.77% in children with RTI. The incidence of PTSD was related to the personality, family environment, and family care of the children. It was found that early psychological intervention and reasonable family care from the family might promote physical and mental welfare as well as contribute to the development of more effective treatments to prevent PTSD.

CONCLUSION: For susceptible children, besides dealing with the somatic injury, psychological intervention and family care should be carried out as early as possible.

Language: en