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A
combination of psychological and biological etiological processes
along with the person's psychological history, the nature
of the trauma, and the availability of posttrauma support go on to
decide the absence or presence of PTSD
symptoms in a person after a traumatic event. The risk factors have
been enumerated beneath, however it must be borne in mind that someone
without risk factors who is exposed to a traumatic event ,may also
develop symptoms.
Demographic
Risk Factors:
- Women
being at a greater risk than men
- Black
and Hispanic being at a greater risk than Caucasian
Pretrauma Risk Factors
include:
- previous
trauma (childhood sexual or physical abuse)
- childhood
separation from parents
- family
instability
- a predisposing mental
health condition (anxiety or depression)
- the type and severity of the traumatic
event
-
lack of adequate and competent support for the person after the
trauma.
The psychological history of a person may include risk factors for
developing PTSD after a traumatic event:
- Borderline personality and/or dependent personality disorders
- Low self-esteem
- Neuroticism
- Pre-existing
negative beliefs
- Previous trauma
People with borderline personality disorder often have a
history of physical and/or sexual abuse, neglect, hostile conflict,
and parental loss or separation. Dependent personality disorder
is characterized by low self-esteem, fear of separation, and the
excessive need to be cared for by others. All of these features may
predispose someone for PTSD after experiencing a traumatic event.
People who have experienced previous
trauma(s) are at risk for
developing PTSD. Repeated exposure to trauma causes hyperactive
release of stress hormones, which may be instrumental in creating
symptoms of PTSD.
Trauma-Related Risk Factors
The severity, duration, proximity to (direct or witnessed), and type
of traumatic event are the most significant risk factors for
developing PTSD. Directly experienced traumatic events include the
following examples:
- Combat
- Kidnapping
- Natural disasters (e.g., fire, tornado, earthquake)
- Catastrophic accident (e.g., auto, airplane, mining)
- Violent sexual assault
- Violent physical assault
Witnessed traumatic events include the following examples:
- Seeing another person violently killed or injured
- Unexpectedly seeing a dead body or body parts
Whether or not the event was perpetrated in a sadistic manner (e.g.,
torture, rape) occurred accidentally (e.g., fire), or occurred as an
"act of God" can affect whether a person develops PTSD and
whether the disorder is acute, chronic, or has a delayed onset of
symptoms.
Posttrauma Risk Factors
Symptoms and duration of PTSD may be more severe if there is a lack
of support from family and/or community. For instance, a rape
victim who either is blamed for the assault or not believed (e.g.,
in the case of rape by a family member) may be at greater risk for
developing PTSD.
Next
: symptoms and complications
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