@article{ref1,
title="Recovery from PTSD following Hurricane Katrina",
journal="Depression and anxiety",
year="2011",
author="McLaughlin, Katie A. and Berglund, Patricia and Gruber, Michael J. and Kessler, Ronald C. and Sampson, Nancy A. and Zaslavsky, Alan M.",
volume="28",
number="6",
pages="439-446",
abstract="Background: We examined patterns and correlates of speed of recovery of estimated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among people who developed PTSD in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Method: A probability sample of prehurricane residents of areas affected by Hurricane Katrina was administered a telephone survey 7-19 months following the hurricane and again 24-27 months posthurricane. The baseline survey assessed PTSD using a validated screening scale and assessed a number of hypothesized predictors of PTSD recovery that included sociodemographics, prehurricane history of psychopathology, hurricane-related stressors, social support, and social competence. Exposure to posthurricane stressors and course of estimated PTSD were assessed in a follow-up interview. Results: An estimated 17.1% of respondents had a history of estimated hurricane-related PTSD at baseline and 29.2% by the follow-up survey. Of the respondents who developed estimated hurricane-related PTSD, 39.0% recovered by the time of the follow-up survey with a mean duration of 16.5 months. Predictors of slow recovery included exposure to a life-threatening situation, hurricane-related housing adversity, and high income. Other sociodemographics, history of psychopathology, social support, social competence, and posthurricane stressors were unrelated to recovery from estimated PTSD. Conclusions: The majority of adults who developed estimated PTSD after Hurricane Katrina did not recover within 18-27 months. Delayed onset was common. Findings document the importance of initial trauma exposure severity in predicting course of illness and suggest that pre- and posttrauma factors typically associated with course of estimated PTSD did not influence recovery following Hurricane Katrina. Depression and Anxiety 0:1-8, 2011.  © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1091-4269",
doi="10.1002/da.20790",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/da.20790"
}