Original Research
Psychiatric Outpatients After the 3.11 Complex Disaster in Fukushima, Japan
Authors:
Arinobu Hori ,
Department of Disaster and Comprehensive Medicine, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Arinobu
MD
Hiroshi Hoshino,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Hiroshi
MA
Itaru Miura,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Itaru
MD, PhD
Masaki Hisamura,
Department of Emergency Medicine Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University, Saitama, Japan
About Masaki
MD, PhD
Akira Wada,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Akira
MD, PhD
Shuntaro Itagaki,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Shuntaro
MD, PhD
Yasuto Kunii,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan; Department of Psychiatry, Aizu Medical Center, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Yasuto
MD, PhD
Junya Matsumoto,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Junya
MD, PhD
Hirobumi Mashiko,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Hirobumi
MD, PhD
Craig L. Katz,
Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Education, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY
About Craig L.
MD
Hirooki Yabe,
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Hirooki
MD, PhD
Shin-Ichi Niwa
Department of Psychiatry, Aizu Medical Center, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
About Shin-Ichi
MD, PhD
Abstract
Background
After the 3.11 complex disaster, fear of radioactive contamination and forced evacuation influenced a number of residents to seek psychiatric care.
Objectives
This study assessed the sequential changes in the number of new outpatients and patients with acute stress disorder (ASD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), adjustment disorder, and depression after the Fukushima disaster.
Methods
We distributed questionnaires to 77 psychiatric institutions to determine the number of new outpatients between March and June in 2010, 2011, and 2012.
Findings
There were 771, 1000, and 733 new patients in 2010, 2011, and 2012, respectively. We observed a statistically significant increase in new patients with ASD or PTSD and a significant decrease in patients with depression in 2011, which returned to predisaster levels in 2012.
Conclusions
There were time- and disease-dependent changes in the numbers of psychiatric care-seeking individuals after the 3.11 complex disaster in Fukushima.
How to Cite:
Hori, A., Hoshino, H., Miura, I., Hisamura, M., Wada, A., Itagaki, S., Kunii, Y., Matsumoto, J., Mashiko, H., Katz, C.L., Yabe, H. and Niwa, S.-I., 2017. Psychiatric Outpatients After the 3.11 Complex Disaster in Fukushima, Japan. Annals of Global Health, 82(5), pp.798–805. DOI: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.aogh.2016.09.010
Published on
08 Mar 2017.
Peer Reviewed
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