US Department of Veterans Affairs National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT, 06516, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, 06510, USA; Department of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, 06510, USA; VA Connecticut Healthcare System, West Haven, CT, 06516, USA.
J Psychiatr Res. 2023 Sep;165:352-359. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2023.08.003. Epub 2023 Aug 11.
Increases of symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression have been observed among individuals exposed to potentially traumatic events in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, associations among different aspects of mental health, such as symptoms of PTSD and suicidal ideation, have also been documented. However, studies including an assessment prior to the onset and during the height of the pandemic are lacking. We investigated changes in symptoms of PTSD, depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and posttraumatic growth in a population-based sample of 1232 U.S. military veterans who experienced a potentially traumatic event during the first year of the pandemic. Symptoms were assessed prior to (fall/winter 2019) and one year into the pandemic (fall/winter 2020). We compared changes in symptom interrelations using network analysis, and assessed their associations with pandemic-related PTSD and posttraumatic growth symptoms. A subtle increase in psychopathological symptoms and a decrease in posttraumatic growth was observed one year into the pandemic. The peripandemic network was more densely connected, and pandemic-related PTSD symptoms were positively associated with age, anxiety, worst-event PTSD symptoms, and pandemic-related posttraumatic growth. Our findings highlight the resilience of veterans exposed to a potentially traumatic event during the first year of a pandemic. Similarly, the networks did not fundamentally change from prepandemic to one year into the pandemic. Despite this relative stability on a group level, individual reactions to potentially traumatic events could have varied substantially. Clinicians should individualize their assessments but be aware of the general resilience of most veterans.
在 COVID-19 大流行的头几个月，接触到潜在创伤性事件的个体出现了创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）、焦虑和抑郁症状增加的情况。同样，也有记录表明心理健康的不同方面之间存在关联，例如 PTSD 症状和自杀意念。然而，缺乏包括在大流行开始前和高峰期进行评估的研究。我们调查了 PTSD、抑郁、焦虑、自杀意念和创伤后成长症状在经历大流行第一年潜在创伤性事件的 1232 名美国退伍军人的基于人群的样本中的变化。症状在大流行前（2019 年秋季/冬季）和大流行一年后（2020 年秋季/冬季）进行评估。我们使用网络分析比较了症状相互关系的变化，并评估了它们与与大流行相关的 PTSD 和创伤后成长症状的关联。在大流行一年后，观察到心理病理症状略有增加，创伤后成长减少。大流行期间的网络更加密集，与大流行相关的 PTSD 症状与年龄、焦虑、最严重事件 PTSD 症状和与大流行相关的创伤后成长呈正相关。我们的研究结果强调了在大流行的第一年接触潜在创伤性事件的退伍军人的韧性。同样，从大流行前到一年后，网络并没有从根本上改变。尽管在群体水平上相对稳定，但个体对潜在创伤性事件的反应可能有很大差异。临床医生应该个性化评估，但要意识到大多数退伍军人的普遍韧性。
