A PROSPECTIVE EXAMINATION OF SYMPTOMS OF POSTTRAUMATIC-STRESS-DISORDER IN VICTIMS OF NONSEXUAL ASSAULT

Symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were examined prospec tively in 84 nonsexual assault victims (53 women, 31 men) beginning sh ortly after the assault (mean = 18.68 days) and continuing weekly for 3 months. At the initial assessment, 71% of the women and 50% of the m en met symptom criteria for PTSD. The incidence of PTSD decreased to 4 2% of the women and 32% of the men by the fourth assessment, and at th e final assessment, 21% of the women but none of the men remained with PTSD. An examination of specific PTSD symptoms indicated that many su bjects who were not diagnosed with PTSD at the final assessment retain ed significant symptoms of PTSD, particularly reexperiencing and arous al symptoms. The severity of PTSD did decrease significantly over the course of the study, but only in those groups who were not diagnosed w ith the disorder at the final assessment Women who were diagnosed with PTSD at the final assessment did not show a significant decrease in s ymptom severity over the course of the study. The results are discusse d with regard to implications for understanding the development and pe rsistence of posttrauma pathology and directions for future research a re outlined.