Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Feb;196(2):122-5.
doi: 10.1192/bjp.bp.108.059139.

Long-term mental health of Vietnamese refugees in the aftermath of trauma

Aina Basilier Vaage  1 , Per Hove Thomsen, Derrick Silove, Tore Wentzel-Larsen, Thong Van Ta, Edvard Hauff
Affiliations

Long-term mental health of Vietnamese refugees in the aftermath of trauma

Aina Basilier Vaage et al. Br J Psychiatry. 2010 Feb.

Erratum in

  • Br J Psychiatry. 2010 Mar;196:248

Abstract

Background: There is no long-term prospective study (>20 years) of the mental health of any refugee group.

Aims: To investigate the long-term course and predictors of psychological distress among Vietnamese refugees in Norway.

Method: Eighty Vietnamese refugees, 57% of the original cohort previously interviewed in 1982 (T(1)) and 1985 (T(2)), completed a self-report questionnaire prior to a semi-structured interview. Mental health was measured using the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised (SCL-90-R).

Results: The SCL-90-R mean Global Severity Index (GSI) decreased significantly from T(1) to T(3) (2005-6), but there was no significant change in the percentage reaching threshold scores (GSI =1.00). Trauma-related mental disorder on arrival and the trajectory of symptoms over the first 3 years of resettlement predicted mental health after 23 years.

Conclusions: Although the self-reported psychological distress decreased significantly over time, a substantial higher proportion of the refugee group still remained reaching threshold scores after 23 years of resettlement compared with the Norwegian population. The data suggest that refugees reaching threshold scores on measures such as the SCL-90-R soon after arrival warrant comprehensive clinical assessment.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types