Temelturk Rahime Duygu, Cikili-Uytun Merve, Yurumez Esra, Zengin Nisa Didem, Buyukkal Ummuhan, Oztop Didem Behice
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey.
Autism Intervention and Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Turkey.
Glob Ment Health (Camb). 2025 Feb 4;12:e20. doi: 10.1017/gmh.2025.13. eCollection 2025.
This study aimed to investigate the psychological impact of the Turkey 2023 earthquakes on preschool-aged children and to compare them with those with other life-threatening traumas. Thirty-four preschool children who experienced earthquakes on February 6, 2023, and applied to our outpatient clinic in the following 3 months, and 37 other trauma-experienced preschool children were included in this cross-sectional study. Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment/Post-Traumatic Stress sections were conducted. Parents were asked to complete the Pediatric Emotional Distress Scale and the Child Behavior Checklist for Ages 1.5-5 to evaluate stress-related reactions alongside psychiatric problems of children. The results showed that acute stress disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were more common in the earthquake-experienced group than in the other trauma-experienced group (Fisher's exact test, 52.9% vs. 8.1%, < 0.001 and 38.2% vs. 8.1%, = 0.004, respectively). Migration after the earthquake had no additional impact on trauma-related psychiatric outcomes, either ASD or PTSD ( = .153, and = 0.106, respectively); whereas sleep problems predicted PTSD (OR = 1.26, β = 0.42, = 0.036) in the earthquake-experienced group. Our study provides implications for understanding the psychological impact of earthquakes and risk factors for PTSD among preschool children.
本研究旨在调查2023年土耳其地震对学龄前儿童的心理影响，并将其与经历其他危及生命创伤的儿童进行比较。34名在2023年2月6日经历地震并在接下来3个月内到我们门诊就诊的学龄前儿童，以及37名其他有创伤经历的学龄前儿童被纳入这项横断面研究。进行了学龄前儿童精神评估/创伤后应激部分。要求家长完成小儿情绪困扰量表和1.5 - 5岁儿童行为清单，以评估儿童与压力相关的反应以及精神问题。结果显示，经历地震的组中急性应激障碍和创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）比其他有创伤经历的组更常见（Fisher精确检验，分别为52.9%对8.1%，<0.001和38.2%对8.1%，=0.004）。地震后的迁移对与创伤相关的精神结局，无论是ASD还是PTSD，均无额外影响（分别为=0.153和=0.106）；而睡眠问题在经历地震的组中可预测PTSD（OR = 1.26，β = 0.42，= 0.036）。我们的研究为理解地震对学龄前儿童的心理影响以及PTSD的危险因素提供了启示。
