Trauma experiences, posttraumatic stress, dissociation, and depression in Cambodian refugees

This study, of Cambodian refugees who have been resettled in the United States, examines the levels of trauma and psychiatric symptoms and to determine the relationship between the amount of trauma experienced and subsequent psychiatric symptoms. Subjects experienced multiple and severe traumas and showed high levels of all symptoms measured. Forty-three (86%) of the subjects met DSM-III-R criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder, 48 (96%) had high dissociation scores, and 40 (80%) could be classified as suffering from clinical depression. Correlations between trauma scores and symptom scores and among symptom scores were moderate to large.

Link is to abstract; full article is available for purchase or to subscribers at that link.

http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/article.aspx?articleid=168134