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Cited by 86Posttraumatic Stress Disorder ResearchSexual Assault and Victimization StudiesChild Abuse and Trauma

Identifying Risk Factors for PTSD in Women Seeking Medical Help after Rape

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Tiihonen Möller, Anna, Bäckström, Torbjörn, Söndergaard, Hans Peter, Helström, Lotti·2014·PLoS ONE
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0111136PMC PMC4207776
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Abstract

OBJECTIVES: Rape has been found to be the trauma most commonly associated with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among women. It is therefore important to be able to identify those women at greatest risk of developing PTSD. The aims of the present study were to analyze the PTSD prevalence six months after sexual assaults and identify the major risk factors for developing PTSD. METHODS: Participants were 317 female victims of rape who sought help at the Emergency Clinic for Raped Women at Stockholm South Hospital, Sweden. Baseline assessments of mental health were carried out and followed up after six months. RESULTS: Thirty-nine percent of the women had developed PTSD at the six month assessment, and 47% suffered from moderate or severe depression. The major risk factors for PTSD were having been sexually assaulted by more than one person, suffering from acute stress disorder (ASD) shortly after the assault, having been exposed to several acts during the assault, having been injured, having co-morbid depression, and having a history of more than two earlier traumas. Further, ASD on its own was found to be a poor predictor of PTSD because of the substantial ceiling effect after sexual assaults. CONCLUSIONS: Development of PTSD is common in the aftermath of sexual assaults. Increased risk of developing PTSD is caused by a combination of victim vulnerability and the extent of the dramatic nature of the current assault. By identifying those women at greatest risk of developing PTSD appropriate therapeutic resources can be directed.

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  • Tiihonen Moller et al. (2014) found no evidence that impaired trauma memory was associated with overall PTSD severity among a community sample of women seeking medical help after victimization.

    “In contrast, Tiihonen Moller, Backstrom, Sondergaard, and Helstrom (2014) found no evidence that impaired trauma memory was associated with overall PTSD severity among a community sample of women seeking medical help after victimization.”

    From Drug-facilitated sexual assault, impaired trauma memory, and implications for mental health treatment (2022) · cites this paper as Tiihonen Moller, Backstrom, Sondergaard, and Helstrom (2014)

    The Results (Predictors of PTSD status; page unavailable) report that assault-related amnesia was not associated with PTSD status after adjustment, which partly supports the claimed null finding. But amnesia was associated with lower odds of PTSD in the crude analysis, and the reported analysis concerns PTSD status rather than overall symptom severity. The study also describes women seeking care at a clinic, not a community sample. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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References 35 · Cited by 86

Research works printed but not linked: 25

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Authors
Tiihonen Möller, A., Bäckström, T., Söndergaard, H. P., & Helström, L.
Affiliations
  • Umeå University (SE)
  • Karolinska Institutet (SE)
ORCID
Venue
PLoS ONE
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2014-10-23
Volume
9
Issue
10
Pages
e111136
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0111136
PMC
PMC4207776
OpenAlex
W2155022909
Cited by
86
References
35
Citations by year
2026: 4 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 2
FWCI
6.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • KTH Publication Database DiVA (KTH Royal Institute of Technology) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
  • Stockholms Läns Landsting
  • Vetenskapsrådet (90418601)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research
  • Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Sexual Assault and Victimization Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child Abuse and Trauma
Keywords
post-traumatic stress disorder, rape, sexual assault, women, risk factors, PTSD prevalence, acute stress disorder, depression, multiple perpetrators, injuries, trauma exposure, victim vulnerability
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Female, Humans, Middle Aged, Psychiatry, Surveys and Questionnaires, Rape, Regression Analysis, Risk Factors, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic, Sweden, Incidence, Crime Victims, Young Adult

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