TY - JOUR
T1 - Lifetime history of traumatic events in a young adult Mexican American sample
T2 - Relation to substance dependence, affective disorder, acculturation stress, and PTSD
AU - Ehlers, Cindy L.
AU - Kim, Corinne
AU - Gilder, David A.
AU - Stouffer, Gina M.
AU - Caetano, Raul
AU - Yehuda, Rachel
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), from the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (NIAAA) grant AA006420 (CLE), the NIAAA, had no further role in study design, in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data, in the writing of the report, or in the decision to submit the paper for publication.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2016
PY - 2016/12/1
Y1 - 2016/12/1
N2 - Mexican Americans comprise one of the most rapidly growing populations in the United States, and within this population, trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are associated with physical and mental health problems. Therefore, efforts to delineate factors that may uniquely contribute to increased likelihood of trauma, PTSD, and substance use disorders over the lifetime in Mexican Americans are important to address health disparities and to develop treatment and prevention programs. Six hundred fourteen young adults (age 18–30 yrs) of Mexican American heritage, largely second generation, were recruited from the community and assessed with the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism and an acculturation stress scale. More males (51.2%) reported experiencing traumas than females (41.1%), however, a larger proportion of females received a PTSD diagnosis (15%) than males (8%). Alcohol dependence and affective disorders, but not anxiety disorders, antisocial disorders, nicotine, marijuana, or stimulant dependence, were significantly comorbid with PTSD. Endorsing higher levels of acculturation stress was also significantly associated with both trauma exposure and a diagnosis of PTSD. Logistic regression revealed that female gender, having an affective disorder, alcohol dependence, higher levels of acculturation stress, and lower levels of education were all predictors of PTSD status. Additionally, alcohol dependence generally occurred after the PTSD diagnosis in early adulthood in this high-risk population. These studies suggest that treatment and prevention efforts should particularly focus on young adult second generation Mexican American women with higher levels of acculturation stress, who may be at higher risk for PTSD, affective disorder, and alcohol dependence following trauma exposure.
AB - Mexican Americans comprise one of the most rapidly growing populations in the United States, and within this population, trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are associated with physical and mental health problems. Therefore, efforts to delineate factors that may uniquely contribute to increased likelihood of trauma, PTSD, and substance use disorders over the lifetime in Mexican Americans are important to address health disparities and to develop treatment and prevention programs. Six hundred fourteen young adults (age 18–30 yrs) of Mexican American heritage, largely second generation, were recruited from the community and assessed with the Semi-Structured Assessment for the Genetics of Alcoholism and an acculturation stress scale. More males (51.2%) reported experiencing traumas than females (41.1%), however, a larger proportion of females received a PTSD diagnosis (15%) than males (8%). Alcohol dependence and affective disorders, but not anxiety disorders, antisocial disorders, nicotine, marijuana, or stimulant dependence, were significantly comorbid with PTSD. Endorsing higher levels of acculturation stress was also significantly associated with both trauma exposure and a diagnosis of PTSD. Logistic regression revealed that female gender, having an affective disorder, alcohol dependence, higher levels of acculturation stress, and lower levels of education were all predictors of PTSD status. Additionally, alcohol dependence generally occurred after the PTSD diagnosis in early adulthood in this high-risk population. These studies suggest that treatment and prevention efforts should particularly focus on young adult second generation Mexican American women with higher levels of acculturation stress, who may be at higher risk for PTSD, affective disorder, and alcohol dependence following trauma exposure.
KW - Mexican American
KW - PTSD
KW - Substance dependence
KW - Trauma
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2016.08.009
DO - 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2016.08.009
M3 - Article
C2 - 27569652
AN - SCOPUS:84988962951
SN - 0022-3956
VL - 83
SP - 79
EP - 85
JO - Journal of Psychiatric Research
JF - Journal of Psychiatric Research
ER -