News Release

Mental health of war survivors

Peer-Reviewed Publication

JAMA Network

In a survey of people who had experienced war-related events and traumas in the former Yugoslavia, researchers found that most survivors (79 percent) reported a sense of injustice in relation to perceived lack of redress for their trauma. Thirty-three percent reported experiencing lifetime posttraumatic stress disorder and 10 percent reported current major depression. Perceived impunity for those responsible for the trauma was one of the factors associated with the sense of injustice. Fear of threat to safety and loss of control over life appeared to be the most important factors associated with posttraumatic stress disorder and depression.

(JAMA.2005; 294:580–590)

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