@article{ref1,
title="The dose-effect relationships between torture and psychiatric symptoms in Vietnamese ex-political detainees and a comparison group",
journal="Journal of nervous and mental disease",
year="1998",
author="Mollica, R. F. and McInnes, K. and Pham, T. and Smith Fawzi, M. C. and Murphy, E. and Lin, L.",
volume="186",
number="9",
pages="543-553",
abstract="The purpose of this study was to determine in Vietnamese ex-political detainees newly arrived into the United States a) the prevalence of torture and psychiatric symptoms and b) the dose-effect relationships between cumulative torture experience and the psychiatric symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression. The study population included Vietnamese ex-political detainees (N = 51) and a comparison group (N = 22). All respondents received culturally validated instruments with known psychometric properties including Vietnamese versions of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 and the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire. The ex-political detainees, in contrast to the comparison group, had experienced more torture events (12.2 SD = 4.2 vs. 2.6 SD = 3.1) and had higher rates of PTSD (90% vs. 79%) and depression (49% vs. 15%). Dose-effect relationships between cumulative torture experience and psychiatric symptoms were positive with the PTSD subcategory of &quot;increased arousal&quot; revealing the strongest association. These findings provide evidence that torture is associated with psychiatric morbidity in Vietnamese refugees. The demonstration of significant dose-effect responses supports the hypothesis that torture is a major risk factor in the etiology of major depression and PTSD. The generalizability of these results to other torture survivor groups is unknown. The interaction between torture and other pre- and post-migration risk factors over time in different cultural settings still needs to be examined.<p /><p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0022-3018",
doi="",
url="http://dx.doi.org/"
}