Symptoms of PTSD Among Adolescents in Malaysia 4 Years Following the 2004 Tsunami

Abstract

While physical infrastructure is quickly rebuilt following a natural disaster, the psychological effects on victims are often neglected. This study investigated symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among adolescents exposed to the 2004 tsunami in Northern Peninsular Malaysia. The randomly selected participants were 216 adolescents living in small villages affected by the tsunami. The study used a cross-sectional design in which PTSD symptoms were assessed with the Child Posttraumatic Stress Reaction Index. Results showed that 8.3% of the participants had severe symptoms of PTSD, 39.8% had moderate symptoms, 42.1% had mild symptoms, and 9.7% had no significant symptoms. Females had significantly higher criterion B symptom scores than males. Multiple regression analysis results indicated that number of lifetime traumas and age were significant predictors of PTSD scores. The prevalence of PTSD symptoms was high even 4 years after the tsunami, a finding consistent with previous studies. The findings are discussed and several recommendations put forward.

KEYWORDS:

• children
• gender
• Malaysia
• PTSD
• tsunami

Acknowledgments

This study was funded by Universiti Malaysia Sarawak Short Term Research Grant 01 146/575/2006 08. We thank Professor Peter Songan (deputy vice chancellor, Research and Innovation Management Center, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak) for supporting this study. Our sincere thanks to the participants, who gave us their full cooperation during the data collection. Many thanks to Zayn Al-Abideen Gregory (UiTM Sarawak) for assistance with editing.

Notes

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Additional information

Notes on contributors

Siti Raudzah Ghazali

Siti Raudzah Ghazali is an associate professor of clinical psychology in the Department of Psychological Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. Her research interests are posttraumatic stress disorder, lifetime trauma, child abuse, domestic violence, and the epidemiology of mental disorders in Malaysia.

Ask Elklit

Ask Elklit is a professor of clinical psychology in the Department of Psychology, University of Southern Denmark, and director of the Danish National Centre for Psychotraumatology. He has studied various types of violence, critical illness, disasters, refugees, veterans, traumatized children, and adolescents.

Khatijah Yaman

Khatijah Yaman is a lecturer in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. She has a special interest in community mental health research, including posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and fatigue in communities.

Mariah Ahmad

Mariah Ahmad was an associate professor in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. Currently she has her own medical practice in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. Most of her research has focused on community mental health.