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
. 2020 May 19:14:23.
doi: 10.1186/s13034-020-00327-5. eCollection 2020.

Mental health in adolescents displaced by the armed conflict: findings from the Colombian national mental health survey

Arturo Marroquín Rivera  1 , Carlos Javier Rincón Rodríguez  1 , Andrea Padilla-Muñoz  2 , Carlos Gómez-Restrepo  3
Affiliations

Mental health in adolescents displaced by the armed conflict: findings from the Colombian national mental health survey

Arturo Marroquín Rivera et al. Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. .

Abstract

Background: Colombia has one of the largest populations of internally displaced individuals by an armed conflict. However, there is no data demonstrating its effect on health, particularly in adolescents.

Purpose: To describe the prevalence and associations of mental illness in the adolescent population displaced by violence in Colombia.

Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of the 2015 National Mental Health Survey (NMHS), which provides data of mental health issues (SRQ), mental health disorders (CIDI-CAPI) and sociodemographic characteristics.

Results: Of the 1754 adolescents interviewed 5.3% (95% CI 4.1 to 6.9) mentioned a change in residence due to violence. Among them 38.5% lived in poverty compared to 23.6% of those non-displaced by the conflict. Suicidal thoughts and suicide attempt were present in 19.8% and 9.1% of displaced adolescents respectively, compared to 5.8% and 2.1% of non-displaced adolescents. The prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and any mental health disorder (measured with the CIDI-CAPI) was higher in the displaced population 12.3%, 11% respectively, in contrast to 2.1% and 7% of those non-displaced. Finally, anxiety and depressive disorders were more common among displaced adolescents.

Conclusion: A higher prevalence of mental health conditions and disorders is observed among displaced adolescents.

Keywords: Adolescence; Colombia; Conflict; Internal displacement; Mental health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

References

    1. Guerrero R, Fandiño-Losada A. Is Colombia a Violent Country? vol. 48. Colombia medica. 2017. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rojas JC. Etapas del conflicto armado en Colombia: hacia el posconflicto. Latinoamérica Rev Estud Latinoam. 2016;62:227–257.
    1. Salaya HE, Rodríguez J. La dinámica poblacional y la violencia armada en Colombia, 1985–2010. Rev Panam Salud Publica. 2014;36(3):158–163. - PubMed
    1. UNHCR. Global Trends: Forced Displacement in 2017. 2018. p. 76. http://www.unhcr.org/5b27be547.pdf. Accessed 11 Sept 2018.
    1. Grupo de memoria histórica. ¡Basta ya! Colombia: Memorias de guerra y dignidad. Centro Nacional de Memoria Histórica. 2013.

LinkOut - more resources