Abstract

VELEZ, Martha L.  and  JANSSON, Lauren M.. Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome in Pregnant Women with Drug Addiction Abstract. rev.colomb.psiquiatr. [online]. 2010, vol.39, suppl.1, pp.84s-92s. ISSN 0034-7450.

Introduction: Trauma exposure is very coomon among women with substance abuse problems, but not all develop post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD). Patients with PTSD have more medical problems, interpersonal issues, drug use and are more resistant to addiction treatment than patients without this disorder. Method: To study the prevalence of SEP in 87 pregnant women in treatment for drug addiction, who reported current or history of violence and accepted lifetime assessment and interventions to improve areas affected by the trauma, using the Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale (PDS), and associated psychological symptoms using the Symptom Checklist Questionnaire-90 Revised (SCL-90R). Results: Over half (50.6%) of patients fulfilled criteria for PTSD. The women with PTSD scored significantly higher on all subscales of the SCL-90R, the Global Severity Index (1.58 vs. 0.89) and the Positive Symptoms Distress Index (2.24 vs.1.78) than women without PTSD. Conclusion: Results highlight the importance of assessing trauma and its consequences in pregnant women receiving treatment for substance abuse and the need to implement more effective interventions for women with addiction problems and PTSD.

Keywords : Substance-related disorders; pregnancy; post-traumatic stress disorders; violence.

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