POSTTRAUMATIC-STRESS-DISORDER ACROSS 2 GENERATIONS OF CAMBODIAN REFUGEES

Objective: To examine the expression of war-related trauma as manifest ed by DSM-III-R rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and majo r depressive disorder in two generations of Cambodian refugees living in the western United States. Method: A probability sample of 209 Khme r adolescents and one of their parents were interviewed using portions of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School- Age Children-Epidemiologic Version and the PTSD section of the Diagnos tic Interview for Children and Adolescents. Interviews were conducted in English by a master's-level clinician with a Khmer interpreter. Res ults: PTSD was found to be significantly related across parent-child g enerations. A nonsignificant generational trend was also found for dep ressive disorders. A number of environmental variables measured in the study (amount of reported war trauma, loss, living arrangements, trea tment received, socioeconomic status) were not related to these findin gs. Parents were more likely to report an earlier onset of PTSD sympto ms. Conclusions: This study suggests that PTSD in refugees may cluster in families. Whether this phenomenon is caused by a genetic susceptib ility to trauma awaits further research. PTSD and depressive disorders in refugee populations, while often comorbid, appear to follow differ ent courses over time.