1.Prevalence of Depression and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Symptoms among Orthopaedic PostTrauma Patients in Hospital Tuanku Jaafar Seremban (HTJS)
Zairul-Nizam ZF ; Thye WE ; Ng VSH ; Soh CFG ; Tan VJW
Malaysian Orthopaedic Journal 2024;18(No.2):34-41
Introduction: Post-trauma patients are at risk of developing
symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and
major depression. The primary goal of this study is to
estimate the prevalence of PTSD and depression symptoms
in patients who have been hospitalised for the treatment of
physical trauma. Additionally, we wanted to compare the
prevalence of PTSD or depression symptoms alone versus
PTSD associated with depression symptoms, in orthopaedic
post-trauma patients.
Materials and methods: This study had involved
orthopaedic post-trauma patients in the orthopaedic ward and
clinic of Hospital Tuanku Jaafar (HTJ), Seremban, Malaysia,
using an online questionnaire, which consist of English and
Malay language. We then determined the prevalence of
depression and PTSD symptoms in orthopaedic post-trauma
patients and compared this prevalence to the severity of the
injuries sustained and any association between PTSD and
depression symptoms.
Results: Only 12.9% of the participants are likely to have
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and 43.3%
of participants have depression symptoms. There is no
significant association between patient demographics and
severity of the injuries with the prevalence of post-traumatic
stress disorder (PTSD) and depression symptoms. However,
of those deemed likely to have PTSD, 93.5% of them had
both post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms as
well as depressive symptoms.
Conclusion: Only a few of the participants are likely to
develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) while almost
half of the participants are likely to have developed
depression. Physicians caring for trauma patients should
screen them for early symptoms of PTSD and depression and
treat them accordingly.