Year: 2002
Type: article
Abstract: To the Editor: After the September 11 terrorist attacks, many people in the United States had substantial symptoms of stress. [1]2][3] However, little information is available from other countries.Between October 6 and October 13, 2001, we conducted a survey measuring subjective health status by means of a standardized instrument -the 12-item Short-Form Health Survey -in a sample of 1928 persons who were representative of the population of Italy.This instrument had been calibrated to provide an expected mean value of 50. 4,5Trained interviewers collected data in the context of a personal telephone interview.The main results -the scores on the summary scales for physical and mental health -are shown in Table 1.The mean overall score on the scale measuring physical health was 50.1 -that is, very close to the expected value.In contrast, the mean overall score on the scale measuring mental health was 48.2 -that is, about 20 percent of 1 SD below the expected value, with lower numbers indicating lower perceived mental health. 4,5Mean scores on both scales were higher among younger and more educated persons.These results, indicating a slight depression in the mental health score, can be compared with historical data.In 2000, as part of a nationwide survey conducted by the Italian National Institute of Statistics, these surveys were administered to a sample of 140,000 citizens; the mean scores were 50.3 on the physical health summary scale and 50.0 on the mental health summary scale.We conclude that the September terrorist attacks negatively influenced mental health summary scores outside the United States.
Source: New England Journal of Medicine
Authors: Jakub Tolar, James E. Coad, Joseph P. Neglia
Institution: University of Minnesota
Language: English
Topic: Lung Cancer Research Studies
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W1997674907