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. 2024 Sep 4;12(1):470.
doi: 10.1186/s40359-024-01964-7.

The bridge relationships of PTSD and depression symptoms among snakebite victims: a cross-sectional community-based survey

Yu Chen #  1 , Wenning Fu #  2 , Xingyue Song  3 , Yanlan Hu  1 , Juntao Wang  1 , Wenjie Hao  1 , Lanfen He  1 , Mohamed Diané  4 , Ibrahima Sory Souaré  4 , Wei Guo  5 , Chuanzhu Lv  6   7 , Xiaotong Han  8 , Shijiao Yan  9   10
Affiliations

The bridge relationships of PTSD and depression symptoms among snakebite victims: a cross-sectional community-based survey

Yu Chen et al. BMC Psychol. .

Abstract

Background: The incidence of comorbid depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms is higher in snakebite victims. However, the present state and contributing factors of depression and PTSD among Chinese snakebite victims remain unclear.

Methods: A representative sample of 6837 snakebite victims were assessed with the Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist (Civilian Version) and The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. Multivariate analyses, including network analysis, evaluated the contributing factors of PTSD and depression symptoms caused by snake bites, as well as the bridge symptoms of comorbidity networks.

Results: Among 6,837 snakebite victims, 79.5% reported PTSD symptoms and 81.4% reported depression symptoms. Comorbidity of PTSD and depression symptoms was found in 75.1%. Key factors included the presence sequelae after snakebite (ORPTSD = 2.31, ORDepression = 1.89), time to medical facilities (6-8 h: ORPTSD = 3.17, ORDepression = 2.46), and marital status (divorced/widowed: ORPTSD = 1.78, ORDepression = 1.76). Symptoms I1 ("Repeated disturbing memories") and D1 ("Bothered by things that don't usually bother me") bridged PTSD and depression networks.

Conclusion: The primary psychological challenges for snakebite victims in China are PTSD and depression symptoms, which is concerning. Standardized diagnosis and treatments, timely medical care, and stable marital relationships can reduce risks. Additional psychological support and management of negative memories, especially for those with severe bridge symptoms, can be beneficial. Further research should concentrate on understanding victims' psychological states and developing effective interventions.

Keywords: Depression; Network analysis; Post-traumatic stress disorder; Snakebite.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow chart of participants included
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
a PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims. Positive edges appear in blue and negative appear in red. The stronger and saturated edges represent stronger regularized partial correlations, the circle around the node represent it's predictability (see Supplementary Materials Table S2 for specific node symptoms and short names); b Bootstrapped confidence intervals of all edge weights of PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims. The red line represents sample values, the black line represents bootstrap means, and the gray area is the bootstrapped CIs. Each horizontal line represents one edge of the network, ordered from the edge with the highest edge-weight to the edge with the lowest edge-weight
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
a The bridge expected influence and bridge strength measure for PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims; b Stability analysis of bridge expected influence and bridge strength of PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
a Three centrality indices (i.e., strength, closeness, betweenness) measure for PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims; b Stability analysis of strength, closeness, betweenness of PTSD and depression network among snakebite victims
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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