TY - JOUR

T1 - Acute Traumatic Stress Screening Can Identify Patients and Their Partners at Risk for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms After a Cardiac Arrest

T2 - A Multicenter Prospective Cohort Study

AU - Armand, Sophia

AU - Wagner, Mette K

AU - Ozenne, Brice

AU - Verbunt, Jeanine

AU - Sep, Simone J S

AU - Berg, Selina K

AU - Knudsen, Gitte M

AU - Stenbæk, Dea S

N1 - Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

PY - 2022

Y1 - 2022

N2 - BACKGROUND: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is prevalent in patients who have had a cardiac arrest and their partners. Accordingly, acute traumatic stress screening is recommended, but its association with later PTSD symptoms has never been addressed in postresuscitation settings.OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine whether acute traumatic stress is associated with PTSD symptoms in patients who have had a cardiac arrest and their partners.METHODS: This multicenter longitudinal study of 141 patients and 97 partners measures acute traumatic stress at 3 weeks and PTSD symptoms at 3 months and 1 year after resuscitation, using the Impact of Event Scale. Linear regression models were used to evaluate the association between severity of acute traumatic stress and PTSD symptoms and post hoc to explore effects of group (patients/partners), age, and sex on acute traumatic stress severity. We categorized Impact of Event Scale scores higher than 26 at 3 months and 1 year as clinical severe PTSD symptoms.RESULTS: Higher acute traumatic stress severity is significantly positively associated with higher PTSD symptom severity at 3 months (patients and partners: P < .001) and 1 year (patients and partners: P < .001) postresuscitation, with the strongest association for women compared with men (P = .03). Acute traumatic stress was higher in women compared with men across groups (P = .02). Clinical severe PTSD symptoms were present in 26% to 28% of patients and 45% to 48% of partners.CONCLUSION: Experiencing a cardiac arrest may elicit clinical severe PTSD symptoms in patients, but particularly in their partners. Screening patients and partners for acute traumatic stress postresuscitation is warranted to identify those at increased risk of long-term PTSD symptoms.

AB - BACKGROUND: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is prevalent in patients who have had a cardiac arrest and their partners. Accordingly, acute traumatic stress screening is recommended, but its association with later PTSD symptoms has never been addressed in postresuscitation settings.OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine whether acute traumatic stress is associated with PTSD symptoms in patients who have had a cardiac arrest and their partners.METHODS: This multicenter longitudinal study of 141 patients and 97 partners measures acute traumatic stress at 3 weeks and PTSD symptoms at 3 months and 1 year after resuscitation, using the Impact of Event Scale. Linear regression models were used to evaluate the association between severity of acute traumatic stress and PTSD symptoms and post hoc to explore effects of group (patients/partners), age, and sex on acute traumatic stress severity. We categorized Impact of Event Scale scores higher than 26 at 3 months and 1 year as clinical severe PTSD symptoms.RESULTS: Higher acute traumatic stress severity is significantly positively associated with higher PTSD symptom severity at 3 months (patients and partners: P < .001) and 1 year (patients and partners: P < .001) postresuscitation, with the strongest association for women compared with men (P = .03). Acute traumatic stress was higher in women compared with men across groups (P = .02). Clinical severe PTSD symptoms were present in 26% to 28% of patients and 45% to 48% of partners.CONCLUSION: Experiencing a cardiac arrest may elicit clinical severe PTSD symptoms in patients, but particularly in their partners. Screening patients and partners for acute traumatic stress postresuscitation is warranted to identify those at increased risk of long-term PTSD symptoms.

U2 - 10.1097/JCN.0000000000000829

DO - 10.1097/JCN.0000000000000829

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 37707973

VL - 37

SP - 394

EP - 401

JO - Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing

JF - Journal of Cardiovascular Nursing

SN - 0889-4655

IS - 4

ER -