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Prospect of future housing and risk of psychological distress at 1 year after an earthquake disaster
Author(s) -
Nakaya Naoki,
Nakamura Tomohiro,
Tsuchiya Naho,
Narita Akira,
Tsuji Ichiro,
Hozawa Atsushi,
Tomita Hiroaki
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
psychiatry and clinical neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.609
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1819
pISSN - 1323-1316
DOI - 10.1111/pcn.12377
Subject(s) - psychological distress , psychology , environmental health , forensic engineering , psychiatry , medicine , engineering , mental health
Aim Since the G reat E ast J apan E arthquake in 2011, many of the affected have been forced to live in temporary housing or at a relative's house. Special attention needs to be paid to the negative health impacts resulting from such changes in living conditions. This study examined the association between future housing prospects and the risk of psychological distress 1 year after the earthquake. Methods In 2012, a questionnaire was completed by a cross‐sectional study of people aged 20 years or older living in Shichigahama T own, M iyagi, northeastern J apan, an area that had been severely inundated by the tsunami. Future housing prospects post‐earthquake were classified into four categories: already settled in permanent housing, moving to new housing, under consideration, or unable to make any plans. Psychological distress was evaluated using the K essler 6 scale, defined as ≥5 points out of 24. We performed multiple logistic regression analyses adjusted for potential confounding factors.Results Of the 3614 individuals studied, subjects whose future housing was under consideration (odds ratio [ OR ] = 2.1, 95% confidence interval [ CI ] = 1.6–2.7, P < 0.01) and those who were unable to make any future housing plans ( OR = 1.9, 95% CI = 1.4–2.5, P < 0.01) exhibited a significantly higher risk of psychological distress compared with subjects who had already settled in permanent housing. Conclusion In this study, subjects whose future housing prospects were under consideration and those who were unable to make any future housing plans were at a higher risk of psychological distress 1 year after the earthquake disaster.