The Child Trauma Screening Questionnaire predicts PTSD onset 6 months after traumatic accident better than the Children’s Impact of Events Scale
Q Does the Child Trauma Screening Questionnaire predict which children are at risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder after a traumatic accident?
METHODS
Design:
Diagnostic cohort study.
Setting:
Three hospitals in South East Queensland, Australia; time period not stated.
Patients:
135 children (84 boys and 51 girls; aged 7–16 years) admitted to hospital following traumatic accidents (eg, car and bike accidents, falls, burns, dog attacks, and sporting injuries). Exclusions: intellectual impairment, children not speaking fluent English, head injury, children in foster care, and children with an accident as a result of child abuse.
Test:
Child Trauma Screening Questionnaire (CTSQ) and the Children’s Impact of Events Scale (CIES) both administered within 2 weeks of the accident.
Diagnostic standard:
DSM-IV diagnosis full or subsyndromal post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) 6 months after the accident using the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule, Child version, Parent Interview Schedule.
Outcomes:
Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value …
