Association of Postdisaster Depression and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder With Mortality Among Older Disaster Survivors of the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami

Abstract

Depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are among the most common mental disorders and confer a heavy burden for individuals, the health care system, and society. The estimated lifetime prevalence is 16.6% for major depressive disorder and 7.8% for PTSD,^1,2 and depression and PTSD frequently co-occur.² In addition to the significant mental health burden, studies^3-13 also suggest that depression and PTSD are associated with elevated risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, functional impairment, lower quality of life, and mortality, mostly in patient, veteran, and general population samples.