Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study
Aim: Volcanic eruptions and other natural disasters may affect survivor’s physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to examine the mental health effects of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption in Iceland on nearby residents, by exposure level and experience. Methods: This populati...
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crsagepubl:10.1177/1403494817751327 2024-06-23T07:52:36+00:00 Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study Gissurardóttir, Ólöf Sunna Hlodversdóttir, Heidrun Thordardóttir, Edda Bjork Pétursdóttir, Gudrún Hauksdóttir, Arna 2018 http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1403494817751327 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1403494817751327 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1177/1403494817751327 en eng SAGE Publications http://journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license Scandinavian Journal of Public Health volume 47, issue 2, page 251-259 ISSN 1403-4948 1651-1905 journal-article 2018 crsagepubl https://doi.org/10.1177/1403494817751327 2024-06-11T04:29:40Z Aim: Volcanic eruptions and other natural disasters may affect survivor’s physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to examine the mental health effects of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption in Iceland on nearby residents, by exposure level and experience. Methods: This population-based study included 1615 residents living in an area close to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano at the time of the eruption and a sample of 697 residents from a non-exposed area. All participants received a questionnaire 6–9 months after the eruption assessing mental health (GHQ-12, PSS-4 and PC-PTSD). The exposed group also received questions related to the experience of the eruption. Results: Replies were received from 1146 participants in the exposed group (71%) and 510 participants in the non-exposed group (73%). Compared to the non-exposed group, participants living in the high-exposed area were at increased risk of experiencing mental distress (GHQ) 6–9 months following the eruption (odds ratio (OR) 1.45%; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11–1.90). High-exposed participants were furthermore at increased risk of experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to those living in the low-exposed area (OR 3.71; 95% CI 1.34–15.41). We further found that those who had direct experience of the eruption were more likely to suffer from symptoms of mental distress, PTSD symptoms and perceived stress, compared to those less exposed. Conclusions: The findings indicate that screening for these factors (e.g. experience of the event) could potentially aid in identifying those most vulnerable to developing psychological morbidity after this unique type of disaster. Article in Journal/Newspaper Eyjafjallajökull Iceland SAGE Publications Scandinavian Journal of Public Health 47 2 251 259 |
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Aim: Volcanic eruptions and other natural disasters may affect survivor’s physical and mental health. The aim of this study was to examine the mental health effects of the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcanic eruption in Iceland on nearby residents, by exposure level and experience. Methods: This population-based study included 1615 residents living in an area close to the Eyjafjallajökull volcano at the time of the eruption and a sample of 697 residents from a non-exposed area. All participants received a questionnaire 6–9 months after the eruption assessing mental health (GHQ-12, PSS-4 and PC-PTSD). The exposed group also received questions related to the experience of the eruption. Results: Replies were received from 1146 participants in the exposed group (71%) and 510 participants in the non-exposed group (73%). Compared to the non-exposed group, participants living in the high-exposed area were at increased risk of experiencing mental distress (GHQ) 6–9 months following the eruption (odds ratio (OR) 1.45%; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.11–1.90). High-exposed participants were furthermore at increased risk of experiencing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to those living in the low-exposed area (OR 3.71; 95% CI 1.34–15.41). We further found that those who had direct experience of the eruption were more likely to suffer from symptoms of mental distress, PTSD symptoms and perceived stress, compared to those less exposed. Conclusions: The findings indicate that screening for these factors (e.g. experience of the event) could potentially aid in identifying those most vulnerable to developing psychological morbidity after this unique type of disaster. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Gissurardóttir, Ólöf Sunna Hlodversdóttir, Heidrun Thordardóttir, Edda Bjork Pétursdóttir, Gudrún Hauksdóttir, Arna |
spellingShingle |
Gissurardóttir, Ólöf Sunna Hlodversdóttir, Heidrun Thordardóttir, Edda Bjork Pétursdóttir, Gudrún Hauksdóttir, Arna Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
author_facet |
Gissurardóttir, Ólöf Sunna Hlodversdóttir, Heidrun Thordardóttir, Edda Bjork Pétursdóttir, Gudrún Hauksdóttir, Arna |
author_sort |
Gissurardóttir, Ólöf Sunna |
title |
Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
title_short |
Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
title_full |
Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
title_fullStr |
Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
title_full_unstemmed |
Mental health effects following the eruption in Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland: A population-based study |
title_sort |
mental health effects following the eruption in eyjafjallajökull volcano in iceland: a population-based study |
publisher |
SAGE Publications |
publishDate |
2018 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1403494817751327 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1403494817751327 http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full-xml/10.1177/1403494817751327 |
genre |
Eyjafjallajökull Iceland |
genre_facet |
Eyjafjallajökull Iceland |
op_source |
Scandinavian Journal of Public Health volume 47, issue 2, page 251-259 ISSN 1403-4948 1651-1905 |
op_rights |
http://journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1177/1403494817751327 |
container_title |
Scandinavian Journal of Public Health |
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47 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
251 |
op_container_end_page |
259 |
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1802643951506685952 |