FULL AND PARTIAL POSTTRAUMATIC-STRESS-DISORDER - FINDINGS FROM A COMMUNITY SURVEY

Objective: Full and partial posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) follo wing trauma exposure were examined in a community sample in order to d etermine their prevalence and their relative importance and functional significance. Method: A standardized telephone interview with a serie s of trauma probes and a DSM-IV PTSD checklist was administered to a r andom sample of 1,002 persons in a midsized Midwestern Canadian city. The authors determined current (i.e., 1-month) prevalence rates of ful l PTSD, i.e., all DSM-IV criteria, and partial PTSD, i.e., fewer than the required number of DSM-IV criterion C symptoms (avoidance/numbing) or criterion D symptoms (increased arousal). Additional questions abo ut interference with functioning were also posed. Results: The estimat ed prevalence of full PTSD was 2.7% for women and 1.2% for men. The pr evalence of partial PTSD was 3.4% for women and 0.3% for men. Interfer ence with work or school was significantly more pronounced in persons with full PTSD than in those with only partial symptoms, although the latter were significantly more occupationally impaired than traumatize d persons without PTSD. Conclusions: These findings in art epidemiolog ic sample underscore observations from patient and military groups tha t many traumatized persons suffer from a subsyndromal form of PTSD. Th ese persons with partial PTSD, although somewhat less impaired than pe rsons with the full syndrome, nonetheless exhibit clinically meaningfu l levels of functional impairment in association with their symptoms. This subthreshold form of PTSD may be especially prevalent in women. A dditional study of partial PTSD is warranted.