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Evaluation of Post-traumatic Stress, Depression, and Anxiety Levels in Survivors of the 2023 Kahramanmaraş Türkiye Earthquakes at the 12th Month After the Event

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 July 2025

Neslihan Cansel Open the ORCID record for Neslihan Cansel [Opens in a new window] ,
Hatice Sandıklı Open the ORCID record for Hatice Sandıklı [Opens in a new window] ,
Şahide Nur İpek Melez Open the ORCID record for Şahide Nur İpek Melez [Opens in a new window] ,
Mustafa Sandıklı Open the ORCID record for Mustafa Sandıklı [Opens in a new window] ,
İpek Balıkçı Çiçek Open the ORCID record for İpek Balıkçı Çiçek [Opens in a new window]  and
Burcu Kayhan Tetik Open the ORCID record for Burcu Kayhan Tetik [Opens in a new window]
Neslihan Cansel
Affiliation:
Assoc. Prof. Dr., Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Inonu University, Malatya, Türkiye
Hatice Sandıklı
Affiliation:
Assist. Dr., Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, https://ror.org/04asck240 Inonu University , Malatya, Türkiye
Şahide Nur İpek Melez
Affiliation:
Assist. Dr., Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Türkiye
Mustafa Sandıklı
Affiliation:
Assist. Dr., Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, https://ror.org/04asck240 Inonu University , Malatya, Türkiye
İpek Balıkçı Çiçek*
Affiliation:
Assist. Dr., Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, Faculty of Medicine, Inonu University, Malatya, Türkiye
Burcu Kayhan Tetik
Affiliation:
Prof. Dr., Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, https://ror.org/04asck240 Inonu University , Malatya, Türkiye
*
Corresponding author: İpek Balıkçı Çiçek; Email: ipek.balikci@inonu.edu.tr
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Abstract

Objectives

On February 6, 2023, 7.7 and 7.6 magnitude earthquakes struck southeastern Türkiye, affecting 11 provinces and causing significant losses. This study aims to assess the mental health status of survivors in the twelfth month after the earthquake.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey with the virtual snowball sampling method. The survey included sociodemographic data, previous traumas, earthquake-related experiences, and the Post-Earthquake Trauma Level Determining Scale (PETLDS) and Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.

Results

The study included 2544 participants. The mean PETLDS score was 58.14±18.18, indicating that the participants were highly traumatized. Among them, 59.5% had high levels of post-traumatic symptoms, 44.2% had high anxiety, and 61% had high depression symptoms. 35.77% of participants displayed a co-occurrence of post-traumatic stress along with anxiety and depression. Female gender was the strongest predictor of high-level trauma and anxiety, while a history of psychiatric disorder was the strongest predictor of depression. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that symptoms were predicted by low income, low education level, smoking, comorbid chronic diseases, past traumatic experiences, the loss or injury of a loved one due to the earthquake, personal injury, temporary displacement, and damage to homes and workplaces.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that one year after the earthquake, mental health problems are prevalent among survivors, highlighting the need for urgent psychiatric interventions.

Keywords

earthquaketraumaanxietydepressionTürkiye

Information

Type
Original Research
Information
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness , Volume 19 , 2025 , e176
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Society for Disaster Medicine and Public Health, Inc

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