Skip to main content
Log in

Posttraumatic stress reactions among children following the Athens earthquake of September 1999

  • ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION
  • Published:
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract.

The objective of the present study was to assess symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety among children 6 months after they had been exposed to an earthquake (EQ) affecting the northwestern suburbs of Athens in September 1999. A total of 115 children attending two elementary schools located at the epicentre of the EQ were assessed. A group of 48 children not affected by the EQ attending a school not affected by the EQ were used as controls. The children and their parents completed a number of questionnaires. Overall, there was a high rate (78%) of severe to mild PTSD symptoms in the EQ exposed group. Additionally, a substantial proportion of these children scored above criteria (32%) for depression compared to the control group (12.5%). Severe or moderate symptoms of PTSD were associated with high scores of depression (p = 0.002). The relationship between PTSD symptoms and anxiety was limited to the “avoidance” factor of the anxiety questionnaire (p = 0.029). Those who were most likely to be affected were children alone at the time of the EQ, and children who sustained injuries. In summary, countries where EQs are frequent should be prepared to offer psychological support to a substantial proportion of children presenting with PTSD and depressive symptoms and should educate and prepare children to cope with these events.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to G. Kolaitis.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Kolaitis, G., Kotsopoulos, J., Tsiantis, J. et al. Posttraumatic stress reactions among children following the Athens earthquake of September 1999. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry 12, 273–280 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-003-0339-x

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-003-0339-x

Key words

Navigation