PSYCHOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES OF ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS IN CHILDREN

Questionnaire information about possible psychological changes in the months following their accident was obtained for 45 school age childre n who had attended an Accident and Emergency Department because of the ir involvement in road :traffic accidents. Central nervous system invo lvement was rare in this group. Short-term psychological consequences were common, but even after 4-7 months 33% were considered by their pa rents to still have a moderate reaction and a further 11% were conside red to be severely affected. The children had high levels of post-trau matic stress symptoms, particularly avoidance in over 50%. Travel anxi ety was described in 39%, 23% were depressed and 14% highly anxious - features which were considered by parents to have appeared following t he accident, often with increasing disturbance over time. Other appare nt repercussions were nightmares and other sleep difficulties in 17%, accident related fears, irritability, anger and emotionally regressed behaviour. As head injury was very uncommon in this series, such psych ological consequences were attributable to non-neurological factors. P arents had become more protective of their children and placed greater restrictions on their travel, causing conflict. Young er children, th ose who had not fully recovered from their accident injuries, and chil dren who also had a parent involved in the same accident, were most at risk. Greater awareness of these psychological consequences of road t raffic accidents is required on the part of parents and professionals. Prospective studies are also needed to delineate more precisely those at greatest risk and to assess the effectiveness of treatment approac hes.