Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31088419›Full record

ArticleBMC psychiatry2019

Prevalence of prolonged grief disorder in a sample of female refugees.

Regina Steil, Jana Gutermann, Octavia Harrison, Annabelle Starck, Laura Schwartzkopff, Meryam Schouler-Ocak, Ulrich Stangier

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC psychiatry, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
13citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
3.4field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 42 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Bereavement issues and prolonged grief disorder: A global perspective.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2023
    Review
  7. Article
  8. Review
  9. Review
  10. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Regina SteilDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany. steil@psych.uni-frankfurt.de.ORCID 0000-0002-5367-5664
Jana GutermannDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany.
Octavia HarrisonDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany.
Annabelle StarckDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany.
Laura SchwartzkopffDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany.
Meryam Schouler-OcakDepartment of Psychiatry, Institute of Medicine, University Clinic of Charité at St. Hedwig Hospital, Berlin, Germany.
Ulrich StangierDepartment of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Institute of Psychology, Goethe University Frankfurt, Varrentrappstr. 40-42, 60486, Frankfurt on Main, Hesse, Germany.
Goethe University Frankfurt · DESt. Hedwig-Krankenhaus · DE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundProlonged Grief Disorder (PGD) is a distinct syndrome that follows bereavement. It is different from other mental disorders and is characterized by symptoms such as yearning for the bereaved, or intense emotional pain or distress. Violent loss is one major risk factor for the development of PGD.

objectivesPGD has been studied in different populations, mostly in small samples, with only a few of them being representative. Although research highlighted that traumatic experiences paired with challenges related to migration make refugees particularly vulnerable to PGD, PGD has only rarely been studied in refugees. Thus, this article a) examines the prevalence of PGD in female refugees in Germany according to the criteria proposed by Prigerson and colleagues in 2009, and b) associates PGD with other common psychopathology (e.g. anxiety, depression, somatization and trauma).

methodA total of 106 female refugees were assessed for bereavement and PGD. Of these 106 individuals, 85 were interviewed using the Prolonged Grief Disorder Scale (PG-13). Symptoms of anxiety and depression were assessed by the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 (HSCL-25), somatization was assessed by the Somatization Subscale of the Symptom-Checklist-90 (SCL-90), and the number of witnessed and experienced trauma was assessed by the Posttraumatic Diagnostic Scale (PDS/HTQ).

resultsNinety of the 106 participants had experienced bereavement, and among those, 9.41% met criteria for PGD. The most frequent PGD symptoms were bitterness, longing or yearning for the bereaved, and lack of acceptance of the loss. Furthermore, grief symptoms were significantly associated with symptoms of depression, anxiety, somatization, and the number of experienced traumatic events.

conclusionThe PGD prevalence rate found corresponds with previous studies, demonstrating that prevalence rates for PGD are especially high in refugees. High prevalence rates of bereavement as well as PGD highlight the need for assessment and specifically tailored treatment of PGD in refugees. PGD goes along with significant psychopathology, which further emphasizes the need for treatment.

Indexed as

GriefAdultBereavementFemaleGermanyHumansMiddle AgedPrevalenceRefugeesRisk FactorsStress Disorders, Post-TraumaticYoung AdultAsylum seekersPrevalenceProlonged grief disorderRefugees

Identifiers

PMID31088419
PMCPMC6518607
OpenAlexW2946948950

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.