Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Nowadays, the influence of the stressors on the incidence of the psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety disorders and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been revealed. The war and the military disputes are known as one of the most important stressors. Chemical weapons not only have destructive and chronic corporal effects but also psychological disorders should be expected in injured people who have experienced the hardship. The purpose of this research was to study the long-lasting effects of exposure to chemical agents on psychological health of the chemical victims in Sardasht, Iran which was bombarded with four 250 kg sulfur mustard bombs in Iran-Iraq war. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, all records related to 1336 registered chemical attack victims in Sardasht city were reviewed. In this study, 306 subjects in two categories were enrolled: (1) 150 chemical attacks survivors, exclude chronic disease (COPD) as case group, (2) 156 unexposed civilians from Sardasht, with their age matched with that of cases sampling by systematic random as the control group. The symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress disorders in both groups were assessed by applying DASS 42-query questionnaire and then compared. FINDINGS: The depression score in chemical victims was 37.14±10.96. The anxiety and stress scores were 41.91±8.6 and 45.72±8.5. These scores in ordinary people were 19.5±7.85, 21.26±7.6 and 26.72±10.66. All above scores in victims group were significantly higher than ordinary people. (p<0.001) CONCLUSION: The results necessitate paying enough attention to diagnosis, follow up and treatment of the people involved exposure to chemical agents may result in severe and long-lasting consequences in the chemical victims.