Trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder in severe mental illness.

TLDR

The study sought to determine the lifetime prevalence of traumatic events and current PTSD among 275 patients with severe mental illness receiving public mental health services. Researchers evaluated trauma exposure and PTSD status in these patients across Concord, Manchester, and Baltimore, New Hampshire, and Maryland. Nearly all participants (98%) reported at least one traumatic event, 43% met criteria for PTSD—yet only 2% had a documented diagnosis—indicating that PTSD is common but frequently overlooked, with the strongest predictors being multiple trauma types and childhood sexual abuse.

Abstract

This research assessed the lifetime prevalence of traumatic events and current posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in 275 patients with severe mental illness (e.g., schizophrenia and bipolar disorder) receiving public mental health services in Concord and Manchester, New Hampshire, and Baltimore, Maryland. Lifetime exposure to traumatic events was high, with 98% of the sample reporting exposure to at least 1 traumatic event. The rate of PTSD in our sample was 43%, but only 3 of 119 patients with PTSD (2%) had this diagnosis in their charts. PTSD was predicted most strongly by the number of different types of trauma, followed by childhood sexual abuse. The findings suggest that PTSD is a common comorbid disorder in severe mental illness that is frequently overlooked in mental health settings.