Evaluation of Types of Traumatic Events and Comorbid Mental and Physical Diseases in Adults with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: A Retrospective Study.

INTRODUCTION

In this study, mental and physical illnesses, types of traumatic events, frequency of recurrence and sociodemographic characteristics of patients with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) were examined.

METHODS

The study included the files of 179 patients over the age of 18 who were admitted to the psychiatry outpatient clinic between 01.12.2010 and 31.01.2023 and diagnosed with PTSD. The data was obtained from the hospital automation system and national database.

RESULTS

Of the 44 patients diagnosed with a single comorbid mental illness, 45.5% had mixed anxiety and depressive disorder and 36.4% had a depressive disorder. The rate of patients with comorbid mental illness in PTSD was 51.4%, and chronic physical illness was observed in 59.8%. In our study, sexual trauma and domestic violence had the highest recurrence rates among traumatic events (80%).

CONCLUSION

Comorbid mental and physical illnesses are common in PTSD. The lack of adequate examination time and an appropriate therapeutic environment causes this diagnosis to be missed by clinicians and prevents patients from getting an ideal health service. In order to prevent recurrences of sexual traumas and domestic violence, the competent authorities must make practices of protecting socially disadvantaged groups more effective and act in accordance with international conventions.