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Cited by 2,407Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchChild Abuse and TraumaMigration, Health and Trauma

Trauma and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in the Community: The 1996 Detroit Area Survey of Trauma

Breslau, Naomi, Kessler, Ronald C., Chilcoat, Howard D., Schultz, Lonni R., Davis, Glenn C., Andreski, Patricia·1998·Archives of General Psychiatry
DOI 10.1001/archpsyc.55.7.626
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: The study estimates the relative importance of specific types of traumas experienced in the community in terms of their prevalence and risk of leading to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). METHODS: A representative sample of 2181 persons in the Detroit area aged 18 to 45 years were interviewed by telephone to assess the lifetime history of traumatic events and PTSD, according to DSM-IV. Posttraumatic stress disorder was assessed with respect to a randomly selected trauma from the list of traumas reported by each respondent, using a modified version of the Diagnostic Interview Schedule, Version IV, and the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview. RESULTS: The conditional risk of PTSD following exposure to trauma was 9.2%. The highest risk of PTSD was associated with assaultive violence (20.9%). The trauma most often reported as the precipitating event among persons with PTSD (31% of all PTSD cases) was sudden unexpected death of a loved one, an event experienced by 60% of the sample, and with a moderate risk of PTSD (14.3%). Women were at higher risk of PTSD than men, controlling for type of trauma. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of PTSD associated with a representative sample of traumas is less than previously estimated. Previous studies have overestimated the conditional risk of PTSD by focusing on the worst events the respondents had ever experienced. Although recent research has focused on combat, rape, and other assaultive violence as causes of PTSD, sudden unexpected death of a loved one is a far more important cause of PTSD in the community, accounting for nearly one third of PTSD cases.

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  • Symptoms of PTSD are more severe, chronic, and recurrent in women than they are in men.

    “Symptoms of PTSD are more severe, chronic, and recurrent in women than they are in men (45–47).”

    From Where Sex Meets Gender: How Sex and Gender Come Together to Cause Sex Differences in Mental Illness (2022) · cites this paper as [45]

  • Patients with SCI generally experience PTSD at higher rates than the general population (7%) and at comparable rates to those found in other traumatized populations (10% to 25%).

    “Although the results are variable, it appears that patients with SCI generally experience PTSD at higher rates than the general population (7% 9 ) and at comparable rates to those found in other traumatized populations (10% to 25% 10 ).”

    From Risk factors for posttraumatic stress disorder in persons with spinal cord injury (2012) · cites this paper as [10]

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Authors
Breslau, N., Kessler, R. C., Chilcoat, H. D., Schultz, L. R., Davis, G. C., & Andreski, P.
Affiliations
  • Henry Ford Health (US)
  • Harvard University (US)
ORCID
Venue
Archives of General Psychiatry
Publisher
American Medical Association (AMA)
Published
1998-07-01
Volume
55
Issue
7
Pages
626
ISSN
0003-990X (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1001/archpsyc.55.7.626
OpenAlex
W2140594127
Cited by
2,407
References
24
Citations by year
2026: 24 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 47 · 2023: 39 · 2022: 62 · 2021: 82 · 2020: 127 · 2019: 78 · 2018: 102 · 2017: 117 · 2016: 130 · 2015: 138 · 2014: 139 · 2013: 138 · 2012: 152
FWCI
40.97
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Locations
  • Archives of General Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH048802, MH-48802)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Migration, Health and Trauma
Keywords
post-traumatic stress disorder, community trauma, assaultive violence, PTSD risk, trauma prevalence
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Crime, Educational Status, Female, Humans, Income, Life Change Events, Male, Michigan, Middle Aged, Risk Factors, Social Class, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Stress, Psychological, Violence, Comorbidity, Life Tables, Prevalence, Marital Status, Racial Groups

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