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TUESDAY, Aug. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Survivors in tsunami-affected areas of Thailand had elevated rates of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) up to nine months after the disaster, according to two new studies says.
The Dec. 26, 2004, tsunami swamped the shorelines of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and a number of other countries. It's estimated that more than 200,000 people died. In Thailand alone, 5,395 people died, 2,991 were unaccounted for, and 8,457 were injured.
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One of the studies surveyed hundreds of displaced and nondisplaced people in the Thai province of Phang Nga, and nondisplaced people in Krabi and Phuket. These were the three hardest-hit provinces in Thailand. An initial mental health survey was conducted in February 2005, and a follow-up survey was done in September 2005.
In the initial survey, symptoms of PTSD were reported by 12 percent of displaced and 7 percent of nondisplaced people in Phang Nga and 3 percent of nondisplaced people in Krabi and Phuket.
Anxiety symptoms were reported by 37 percent of displaced people and 30 percent of nondisplaced people in Phang Nga and by 22 percent of nondisplaced people in Krabi and Phuket.
Depression symptoms were reported by 30 percent of displaced and 21 percent of nondisplaced people in Phang Nga and by 10 percent of nondisplaced people in the two other provinces.
Loss of livelihood was independently and significantly associated with symptoms of all three mental health problems, according to the study, published in the Aug. 2 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The nine-month follow-up survey found a decrease in the prevalence of PTSD, anxiety and depression symptoms among displaced and nondisplaced people in Phang Nga, but the rates were still higher than normal.
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-- Robert Preidt
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