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. 2017 Jul/Aug;25(4):159-169.
doi: 10.1097/HRP.0000000000000136.

The Prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Primary Care: A Systematic Review

Margaret Spottswood  1 , Dimitry S Davydow, Hsiang Huang
Affiliations

The Prevalence of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Primary Care: A Systematic Review

Margaret Spottswood et al. Harv Rev Psychiatry. 2017 Jul/Aug.

Abstract

Learning objectives: After participating in this activity, learners should be better able to:• Determine the prevalence of clinician-diagnosed posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in primary care patients• Identify the prevalence of questionnaire-ascertained PTSD symptoms in primary care patients OBJECTIVE: Determine the prevalence of clinician-diagnosed PTSD and questionnaire-ascertained PTSD symptoms in primary care patients.

Methods: A systematic review of the literature using the PRISMA method, searching MEDLINE, CINAHL, Cochrane Database, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Google Scholar, and relevant book chapter bibliographies. Studies that reported on the prevalence, including point or lifetime prevalence, of PTSD ascertained using diagnostic interviews or self-report questionnaires, or from administrative data, among patients seen in primary care were deemed eligible for inclusion. We abstracted data on the PTSD assessment tool, the mean questionnaire scores/cutoff scores, the time period of PTSD symptoms, and PTSD prevalence reported.

Results: Of 10,614 titles screened, 41 studies were eligible for inclusion. The included studies assessed PTSD in a total of 7,256,826 primary care patients. The median point prevalence of PTSD across studies was 12.5%. The median point prevalence in the civilian population was 11.1%; in the special-risk population, 12.5%; and in veterans, 24.5%. The point prevalence of diagnostic interview-ascertained PTSD ranged from 2% to 32.5%, and the point prevalence of questionnaire-based substantial PTSD symptoms ranged from 2.9% to 39.1%. Lifetime prevalence of diagnostic interview-ascertained PTSD ranged from 14.5% to 48.8%. The prevalence of PTSD in administrative data-based studies ranged from 3.5% to 29.2%.

Conclusions: PTSD is common in primary care settings. Additional research on effective and generalizable interventions for PTSD in primary care is needed.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: Margaret Spottswood has no conflicts of interest to declare. Hsiang Huang has no conflicts of interest to declare. Dimitry Davydow has no conflicts of interest to declare.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
PRISMA flow diagram of article selection
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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