Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-fbnjt Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-17T13:20:11.413Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Post-traumatic stress symptoms in an Italian cohort of subjects complaining occupational stress

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2020

Rodolfo Buselli ,
Claudia Carmassi Open the ORCID record for Claudia Carmassi [Opens in a new window] ,
Martina Corsi Open the ORCID record for Martina Corsi [Opens in a new window] ,
Sigrid Baldanzi ,
Gianmarco Battistini ,
Martina Chiumiento ,
Gabriele Massimetti ,
Liliana Dell’Osso  and
Alfonso Cristaudo
Rodolfo Buselli
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Claudia Carmassi
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Martina Corsi*
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Sigrid Baldanzi
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Gianmarco Battistini
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Martina Chiumiento
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
Gabriele Massimetti
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Liliana Dell’Osso
Affiliation:
Psychiatric Clinic, Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
Alfonso Cristaudo
Affiliation:
Occupational Health Department, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Pisana, Cisanello (Pisa), Italy
*
Author for correspondence: Martina Corsi Email: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective

Work-related stress presents a significant impact on work performance and physical health. It has been associated with the onset of a multitude of symptoms. The main aim of this investigation is to better understand the impact of post-traumatic stress symptomatology, using a specific self-assessment questionnaire, in subjects experiencing occupational stress with the rationale to address the variegated symptoms expressed by this particular population in a post-traumatic dimensional perspective.

Methods

Authors collected socio-demographic, occupational, and clinical data. They utilized Trauma and Loss Spectrum Self Report (TALS-SR), a questionnaire investigating post-traumatic stress symptoms. The population size was 345 subjects who presented at the Occupational Health Department of a university hospital over a 3 years period (2016–2018).

Results

Data analysis revealed 33.9% of subjects who met post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) criteria. Gender distribution of this set was (36.4% female, 31% male). A family history or personal history of mental disorders were related to higher scores in almost all TALS-SR domains and were related, respectively, to higher scores of criterion B “intrusion symptoms” (P = .014), criterion D “negative alterations in cognitions and mood” (P = .023), and criterion E “arousal” (P = .033) of PTSD. Differences in TALS-SR scores also emerged based on age and gender.

Conclusions

PTSD symptoms manifest at a significant level in those who experience work-related stress. Personal background of individuals, both in terms of family and personal history for mental disorders, seems to increase their vulnerability to develop post-traumatic stress symptoms. This study suggests the importance of evaluating occupational stress from a post-traumatic stress perspective also at an early stage.

Keywords

Occupational stresswork-related stresspsychosocial risksworkplace harassmentPTSDTALS-SR
Type
Original Research
Information
CNS Spectrums , Volume 26 , Issue 5 , October 2021 , pp. 513 - 520
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Rodolfo Buselli, Claudia Carmassi, Liliana Dell’Osso, and Alfonso Cristaudo contributed equally to this work.

References

Harter, JK, Schmidt, FL, Keyes, CLM. Well-being in the workplace and its relationship to business outcomes: a review of the Gallup studies. In: Flourishing: Positive Psychology and the Life Well-Lived . Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2004:205–224. doi:10.1037/10594-009.Google Scholar
Karasek, R, Brisson, C, Kawakami, N, Houtman, I, Bongers, P, Amick, B. The Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ): an instrument for internationally comparative assessments of psychosocial job characteristics. J Occup Health Psychol. 1998;3(4):322–355. doi:10.1037/1076-8998.3.4.322.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Marmot, MG, Bosma, H, Hemingway, H, Brunner, E, Stansfeld, S. Contribution of job control and other risk factors to social variations in coronary heart disease incidence. Lancet. 1997;350(9073):235–239. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(97)04244-X.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nielsen, MB, Hetland, J, Matthiesen, SB, Einarsen, S. Longitudinal relationships between workplace bullying and psychological distress. Scand J Work Environ Heal. 2012;38(1):38–46. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3178.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nielsen, MB, Magerøy, N, Gjerstad, J, Einarsen, S. Workplace bullying and subsequent health problems. Tidsskr den Nor Laegeforening. 2014;134(12-13):1233–1238. doi:10.4045/tidsskr.13.0880.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lahelma, E, Lallukka, T, Laaksonen, M, Saastamoinen, P, Rahkonen, O. Workplace bullying and common mental disorders: a follow-up study. J Epidemiol Community Health. 2012;66(6):e3. doi:10.1136/jech.2010.115212.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leach, LS, Poyser, C, Butterworth, P. Workplace bullying and the association with suicidal ideation/thoughts and behaviour: a systematic review. Occup Environ Med. 2017;74(1):72–79. doi:10.1136/oemed-2016-103726.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Khubchandani, J, Price, JH. Workplace harassment and morbidity among US adults: results from the National Health Interview Survey. J Community Health. 2015;40(3):555–563. doi:10.1007/s10900-014-9971-2.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Verkuil, B, Atasayi, S, Molendijk, ML. Workplace bullying and mental health: a meta-analysis on cross-sectional and longitudinal data. PLoS One. 2015;10(8):e0135225. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0135225.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buselli, R, Veltri, A, Baldanzi, S, et al. Work-related stress disorders: variability in clinical expression and pitfalls in psychiatric diagnosis. La Med del Lav[Work Environ Heal]. 2016;107(2):92–101.Google ScholarPubMed
Kostev, K, Rex, J, Waehlert, L, Hog, D, Heilmaier, C. Risk of psychiatric and neurological diseases in patients with workplace mobbing experience in Germany: a retrospective database analysis. GMS Ger Med Sci. 2014;12(1). doi:10.3205/000195.Google ScholarPubMed
Buselli, R, Veltri, A, Baldanzi, S, et al. Plasma Brain‐Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and serum cortisol levels in a sample of workers exposed to occupational stress and suffering from adjustment disorders. Brain Behav. 2019;9(7):e01298. doi:10.1002/brb3.1298.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mausner-Dorsch, H, Eaton, WW. Psychosocial work environment and depression: epidemiologic assessment of the demand-control model. Am J Public Health. 2000;90(11):1765–1770. doi:10.2105/AJPH.90.11.1765.Google ScholarPubMed
Stansfeld, S, Candy, B. Psychosocial work environment and mental health—a meta-analytic review. Scand J Work Environ Heal. 2006;32(6):443–462. doi:10.5271/sjweh.1050.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Gigantesco, A, Lega, I. Stress lavorativo e salute mentale [Occupational stress and mental health]. Epidemiol Prev. 2013;37(1):67–73.Google Scholar
Gale, S, Mordukhovich, I, Newlan, S, McNeely, E. The impact of workplace harassment on health in a working cohort. Front Psychol. 2019;10(May):1181. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01181.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Spice of Life or Kiss of Death? Working on Stress|ENMHP. http://www.mentalhealthpromotion.net/?i=portal.en.bibliography.946. Accessed June 23, 2020.Google Scholar
Tonini, S, Lanfranco, A, Dellabianca, A, et al. Work-related stress and bullying: gender differences and forensic medicine issues in the diagnostic procedure. J Occup Med Toxicol. 2011;6(1):29. doi:10.1186/1745-6673-6-29.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Byllesby, BM, Elhai, JD, Tamburrino, M, et al. General distress is more important than PTSD’s cognition and mood alterations factor in accounting for PTSD and depression’s comorbidity. J Affect Disord. 2017;211:118–123. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2017.01.014.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carmassi, C, Corsi, M, Bertelloni, CA, et al. Post-traumatic stress and major depressive disorders in parent caregivers of children with a chronic disorder. Psychiatry Res. 2019;279:195–200. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2019.02.062.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Flory, JD, Yehuda, R. Comorbidity between post-traumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder: alternative explanations and treatment considerations. Dialogues Clin Neurosci. 2015;17(2):141–150.Google ScholarPubMed
Carmassi, C, Akiskal, HS, Yong, SS, et al. Post-traumatic stress disorder in DSM-5: estimates of prevalence and criteria comparison versus DSM-IV-TR in a non-clinical sample of earthquake survivors. J Affect Disord. 2013;151(3):843–848. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2013.07.020.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carmassi, C, Corsi, M, Bertelloni, CA, et al. Mothers and fathers of children with epilepsy: gender differences in post-traumatic stress symptoms and correlations with mood spectrum symptoms. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2018;14:1371–1379. doi:10.2147/NDT.S158249.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dell’Osso, L, Katherine, MK, Carmassi, C, et al. Validity and reliability of the Structured Clinical Interview for the Trauma and Loss Spectrum (SCI-TALS). Clin Pract Epidemiol Ment Heal. 2008;4(1):2. doi:10.1186/1745-0179-4-2.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dell’Osso, L, Carmassi, C, Rucci, P, et al. A multidimensional spectrum approach to post-traumatic stress disorder: comparison between the Structured Clinical Interview for Trauma and Loss Spectrum (SCI-TALS) and the Self-Report instrument (TALS-SR). Compr Psychiatry. 2009;50(5):485–490. doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2008.11.006.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bonafons, C, Jehel, L, Coroller-Béquet, A. Specificity of the links between workplace harassment and PTSD: primary results using court decisions, a pilot study in France. Int Arch Occup Environ Health. 2009;82(5):663–668. doi:10.1007/s00420-008-0370-9.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carmassi, C, Gesi, C, Corsi, M, et al. Exploring PTSD in emergency operators of a major University Hospital in Italy: a preliminary report on the role of gender, age, and education. Ann Gen Psychiatry. 2018;17(1):17. doi:10.1186/s12991-018-0184-4.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Katsavouni, F, Bebetsos, E, Malliou, P, Beneka, A. The relationship between burnout, PTSD symptoms and injuries in firefighters. Occup Med (Chic Ill). 2016;66(1):32–37.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Chatzea, VE, Sifaki-Pistolla, D, Vlachaki, SA, Melidoniotis, E, Pistolla, G. PTSD, burnout and well-being among rescue workers: seeking to understand the impact of the European refugee crisis on rescuers. Psychiatry Res. 2018;262:446–451. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2017.09.022.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nagasawa, T, Nomura, K, Takenoshita, S, et al. The Work Harassment Scale. Vasa, Åbo. Akademi University. Nihon Eiseigaku Zasshi. 2019;74:300. doi:10.1265/jjh.18033.Google Scholar
Carmassi, C, Akiskal, HS, Bessonov, D, et al. Gender differences in DSM-5 versus DSM-IV-TR PTSD prevalence and criteria comparison among 512 survivors to the LAquila earthquake. J Affect Disord. 2014;160:55–61. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2014.02.028.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cassano, GB, Dell’Osso, L, Frank, E, et al. The bipolar spectrum: a clinical reality in search of diagnostic criteria and an assessment methodology. J Affect Disord. 1999;54(3):319–328. doi:10.1016/S0165-0327(98)00158-X.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Husky, MM, Mazure, CM, Kovess-Masfety, V. Gender differences in psychiatric and medical comorbidity with post-traumatic stress disorder. Compr Psychiatry. 2018;84:75–81. doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2018.04.007.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dell’Osso, L, Corsi, M, Gesi, C, et al. Adult Autism Subthreshold Spectrum (AdAS Spectrum) in parents of pediatric patients with epilepsy: correlations with post-traumatic stress symptoms. Compr Psychiatry. 2018;83:25–30. doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2018.02.004.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
D’Aoust, RF, Rossiter, AG, Elliott, A, Ji, M, Lengacher, C, Groer, M. Women veterans, a population at risk for fibromyalgia: the associations between fibromyalgia, symptoms, and quality of life. Mil Med. 2017;182(7):e1828–e1835. doi:10.7205/milmed-d-15-00557.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coppens, E, Van Wambeke, P, Morlion, B, et al. Prevalence and impact of childhood adversities and post-traumatic stress disorder in women with fibromyalgia and chronic widespread pain. Eur J Pain. 2017;21(9):1582–1590. doi:10.1002/ejp.1059.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Conversano, C, Carmassi, C, Bertelloni, CA, et al. Potentially traumatic events, post-traumatic stress disorder and post-traumatic stress spectrum in patients with fibromyalgia. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 2019;37(1):S39–S43.Google ScholarPubMed
Perrin, MA, DiGande, L, Wheeler, K, Thorpe, L, Farfel, M, Brackbill, R. Differences in PTSD prevalence and associated risk factors among World Trade Center disaster rescue and recovery workers. Am J Psychiatry. 2007;164(9):1385–1394. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2007.06101645.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mealer, M, Conrad, D, Evans, J, et al. Feasibility and acceptability of a resilience training program for intensive care unit nurses. Am J Crit Care. 2014;23(6):e97-e105. doi:10.4037/ajcc2014747.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Daniels, LR, Boehnlein, J, McCallion, P., Aging, depression, and wisdom: a pilot study of life-review intervention and PTSD treatment with two groups of Vietnam veterans. J Gerontol Soc Work. 2015;58(4):420–436. doi:10.1080/01634372.2015.1013657.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Knight, LK, Naaz, F, Stoica, T, Depue, BE. Lifetime PTSD and geriatric depression symptomatology relate to altered dorsomedial frontal and amygdala morphometry. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging. 2017;267:59–68. doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2017.07.003.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dell’Osso, L, Carmassi, C, Massimetti, G, Daneluzzo, E, Di Tommaso, S, Rossi, A. Full and partial PTSD among young adult survivors 10 months after the L’Aquila 2009 earthquake: gender differences. J Affect Disord. 2011;131(1–3):79–83. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2010.11.023.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Armour, C, Mullerová, J, Elhai, JD. A systematic literature review of PTSD’s latent structure in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV to DSM-5. Clin Psychol Rev. 2016;44:60–74. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2015.12.003.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dell’Osso, L, Carpita, B, Cremone, IM, et al. The mediating effect of trauma and stressor related symptoms and ruminations on the relationship between autistic traits and mood spectrum. Psychiatry Res. 2019;279:123–129. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2018.10.040.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dell’Osso, L, Carpita, B, Gesi, C, et al. Subthreshold autism spectrum disorder in patients with eating disorders. Compr Psychiatry. 2018;81:66–72. doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2017.11.007.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Buselli, R, Baldanzi, S, Corsi, M, et al. Psychological care of health workers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy: preliminary report of an Occupational Health Department (AOUP) responsible for monitoring hospital staff condition. Sustainability. 2020;12(12):5039. doi:10.3390/su12125039.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carmassi, C, Corsi, M, Bertelloni, CA, et al. Post-traumatic stress spectrum symptoms in parents of children affected by epilepsy: gender differences. Seizure. 2020;57:529. doi:10.1016/j.seizure.2020.06.021.Google Scholar