Psychiatric disorders in children at two year after the tsunami disaster in Thailand

Objective: Psychiatric disorders caused by the tsunami disaster were investigated during two years after the event. Psychiatric diagnosis and management were evaluated at one and two years after the disaster. Methods: One thousand three hundreds and sixty four students from 2 schools were enrolled. Three tests were used according to the students’ grades. Those included pediatric symptoms checklist, Childhood Depressive Inventory and the Revised Child Impact of Events scale (CRIES). DSM-IV psychiatric disorders were diagnosed by child and adolescent psychiatrists. Results: Psychiatric disorders were found in 142 students (10.4%) at one year after the tsunami disaster. Of these, ninety students (6.3%) did develop psychiatric disorders after the event. At two years after the disaster, psychiatric disorders were found in 22 students (1.6%). The most common psychiatric problem was post traumatic stress disorder. One per cent of grade 4-6 students and 0.3% of grade 7-9 students had psychiatric disorders. The prevalence was lower in kindergarten (0.1%) and in grade 1-3 students (0.1%). Conclusion: The prevalence of psychiatric disorders declined from 10.4% at one year after the event to 1.6% at two years after the event. The prevalence of psychiatric disorders in grade 4- 6 and 7-9 students was higher than that in kindergarten and grade 1-3 students. The most common psychiatric problem is post-traumatic stress disorder