A preliminary study of the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety symptoms in female adolescents maltreatment victims in Mexico

Abstract

Introduction. Although child maltreatment is related with psychopathologic symptoms, however their clinical prevalence in the general population and more so in specific groups of age and gender, such as female adolescents, has been scarcely documented. Objective. The purpose of the present study was to examine the prevalence mental illness symptoms ‒such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and anxiety‒ in female adolescent maltreatment victims in Mexico. Method. Fifty-five 12-17-year old female adolescent victims of maltreatment (sexual, physical, and emotional abuse) recruited from four different Mexican institutions were evaluated through clinical scales for post-traumatic stress, depression, and anxiety, in addition to clinical interviews. Results. More than half of the participants presented significant scores of psychopathological symptoms in the three scales evaluated. Discussion and conclusion. The high prevalence of psychopathologic symptoms found in this study suggests that female adolescents who had experienced some form of abuse present highed a susceptibility to develop psychopathology. Results are discussed in the context of their relevance as a public health problem and their implications for professional interventions.