In:
Journal of Traumatic Stress, Wiley, Vol. 30, No. 2 ( 2017-04), p. 142-148
Abstract:
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in emergency service personnel and other trauma‐exposed populations is known to be associated with a variety of physical health problems. However, little attention has been paid to the health of ageing emergency service personnel, who may be forced into early medical retirement because of a combination of these issues. Currently employed ( N = 274) Australian firefighters completed a cross‐sectional survey using validated, self‐report measures of PTSD and somatic symptoms. Analyses examined the association between probable PTSD and a range of common somatic symptoms, and whether any association differed depending on the age of the firefighters. Firefighters with PTSD reported greater levels of neurological ( p = .024), gastrointestinal ( p = .015), and cardiorespiratory ( p = .027) symptoms compared to those without PTSD. After adjusting for sex, age, and rank, linear regression analysis demonstrated that PTSD was significantly associated with increased total somatic symptom severity ( p = .024), with PTSD accounting for 9.8% of the variance in levels of somatic symptoms. There was no interaction between age and the association between PTSD and somatic symptom severity. These results suggest that PTSD is associated with a significant increase in a wide range of somatic symptoms among firefighters, regardless of age. The implications for the identification and treatment of PTSD are discussed.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0894-9867
,
1573-6598
DOI:
10.1002/jts.2017.30.issue-2
Language:
English
Publisher:
Wiley
Publication Date:
2017
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2017312-X
SSG:
2,1
SSG:
5,2
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