Original scientific paper

PSYCHIATRIC AND HEALTH IMPACT OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY TRAUMATIZATION IN WIVES OF VETERANS WITH POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER

Miro Klarić orcid.org/0000-0003-3554-5759 ; Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Mostar, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Tanja Frančišković ; School of Medicine, University of Rijeka, Croatia
Edita Černi Obrdalj ; Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Mostar, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Daniela Petrić ; Psychiatric Clinic, University Hospital Rijeka, Croatia
Dolores Britvić ; Psychiatric Clinic, University Hospital Split, Croatia
Nikolina Zovko ; Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Mostar, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Abstract

Background: Along with primary traumatization, wives of PTSD-diagnosed war veterans often become victims of the altered and
dysfunctional state of their partners, which adds to the severity of symptoms of primary traumatization and furthers the development
of other mental disorders. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of primary and secondary traumatization in wives of
PTSD-diagnosed war veterans and wives of war veterans without PTSD.
Subjects and methods: The experimental group consisted of 154 wives whose veteran husbands had been treated in Mostar
Clinical Hospital for psychotrauma-induced PTSD. The control group was formed of 77 wives of war veterans who do not suffer
from PTSD. The research used a general demographic questionnaire, the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ) and the MINI
International Neuropsychiatric Interview.
Results: Wives of veterans with chronic PTSD experienced a significantly greater number of traumatic events (t=2.66; p=0.008)
and had higher scores of PTSD symptoms (t=8.93; p<0.001). A significantly larger number of these women reported chronic somatic
diseases (χ²=4.553; p=0.033). Furthermore, wives of PTSD-affected veterans significantly more frequently met criteria for current
depression episode (χ²=20.65; p<0.001), past depression episode (χ²=24.40; p<0.001), depression with melancholic features
(χ²=19.20; p<0.001), dysthymia (χ²=7.15; p=0.007), panic disorder with agoraphobia (χ²=5.28; p=0.022), PTSD (χ²=18.39; ss=1;
p<0.001) and generalized anxiety disorder (χ²=19.58; p<0.001). This group also showed a higher level of suicidality (χ²=8.95;
p=0.003).
Conclusion: The findings of this research show how mental difficulties experienced by wives of PTSD-diagnosed war veterans
affect the interrelationship of their primary and secondary traumatization.

Keywords

PTSD; war veterans; wives; primary and secondary traumatization; mental disorders

Hrčak ID:

106236

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/106236

Publication date:

24.9.2012.

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