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Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study

BACKGROUND: Psychological sequelae are among the most pronounced effects in populations following exposure to oil spills. Women in particular represent a vulnerable yet influential population but have remained relatively understudied with respect to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DHOS). OBJECTIVE:...

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Autores principales: Rung, Ariane L., Gaston, Symielle, Oral, Evrim, Robinson, William T., Fontham, Elizabeth, Harrington, Daniel J., Trapido, Edward, Peters, Edward S.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 2016
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5010393/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27164620
http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP167
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author Rung, Ariane L.
Gaston, Symielle
Oral, Evrim
Robinson, William T.
Fontham, Elizabeth
Harrington, Daniel J.
Trapido, Edward
Peters, Edward S.
author_facet Rung, Ariane L.
Gaston, Symielle
Oral, Evrim
Robinson, William T.
Fontham, Elizabeth
Harrington, Daniel J.
Trapido, Edward
Peters, Edward S.
author_sort Rung, Ariane L.
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Psychological sequelae are among the most pronounced effects in populations following exposure to oil spills. Women in particular represent a vulnerable yet influential population but have remained relatively understudied with respect to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DHOS). OBJECTIVE: To describe the relationship between oil spill exposure and mental health among women living in the southern coastal Louisiana parishes affected by the DHOS. METHODS: The Women and Their Children’s Health Study administered telephone interviews to a population-based sample of 2,842 women between 2012 and 2014 following the DHOS. Participants were asked about depression, mental distress, domestic conflict, and exposure to the oil spill. RESULTS: Over 28% of the sample reported symptoms of depression, 13% reported severe mental distress, 16% reported an increase in the number of fights with their partners, and 11% reported an increase in the intensity of partner fights. Both economic and physical exposure were significantly associated with depressive symptoms and domestic conflict, whereas only physical exposure was related to mental distress. CONCLUSIONS: This large, population-based study of women in southern coastal Louisiana, a particularly disaster-prone area of the country, revealed high rates of poor mental health outcomes. Reported exposure to the DHOS was a significant predictor of these outcomes, suggesting avenues for future disaster mitigation through the provision of mental health services. CITATION: Rung AL, Gaston S, Oral E, Robinson WT, Fontham E, Harrington DJ, Trapido E, Peters ES. 2016. Depression, mental distress, and domestic conflict among Louisiana women exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study. Environ Health Perspect 124:1429–1435; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP167
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spelling pubmed-50103932016-09-13 Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study Rung, Ariane L. Gaston, Symielle Oral, Evrim Robinson, William T. Fontham, Elizabeth Harrington, Daniel J. Trapido, Edward Peters, Edward S. Environ Health Perspect Research BACKGROUND: Psychological sequelae are among the most pronounced effects in populations following exposure to oil spills. Women in particular represent a vulnerable yet influential population but have remained relatively understudied with respect to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DHOS). OBJECTIVE: To describe the relationship between oil spill exposure and mental health among women living in the southern coastal Louisiana parishes affected by the DHOS. METHODS: The Women and Their Children’s Health Study administered telephone interviews to a population-based sample of 2,842 women between 2012 and 2014 following the DHOS. Participants were asked about depression, mental distress, domestic conflict, and exposure to the oil spill. RESULTS: Over 28% of the sample reported symptoms of depression, 13% reported severe mental distress, 16% reported an increase in the number of fights with their partners, and 11% reported an increase in the intensity of partner fights. Both economic and physical exposure were significantly associated with depressive symptoms and domestic conflict, whereas only physical exposure was related to mental distress. CONCLUSIONS: This large, population-based study of women in southern coastal Louisiana, a particularly disaster-prone area of the country, revealed high rates of poor mental health outcomes. Reported exposure to the DHOS was a significant predictor of these outcomes, suggesting avenues for future disaster mitigation through the provision of mental health services. CITATION: Rung AL, Gaston S, Oral E, Robinson WT, Fontham E, Harrington DJ, Trapido E, Peters ES. 2016. Depression, mental distress, and domestic conflict among Louisiana women exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study. Environ Health Perspect 124:1429–1435; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP167 National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 2016-05-10 2016-09 /pmc/articles/PMC5010393/ /pubmed/27164620 http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP167 Text en http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/ Publication of EHP lies in the public domain and is therefore without copyright. All text from EHP may be reprinted freely. Use of materials published in EHP should be acknowledged (for example, “Reproduced with permission from Environmental Health Perspectives”); pertinent reference information should be provided for the article from which the material was reproduced. Articles from EHP, especially the News section, may contain photographs or illustrations copyrighted by other commercial organizations or individuals that may not be used without obtaining prior approval from the holder of the copyright.
spellingShingle Research
Rung, Ariane L.
Gaston, Symielle
Oral, Evrim
Robinson, William T.
Fontham, Elizabeth
Harrington, Daniel J.
Trapido, Edward
Peters, Edward S.
Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title_full Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title_fullStr Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title_full_unstemmed Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title_short Depression, Mental Distress, and Domestic Conflict among Louisiana Women Exposed to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in the WaTCH Study
title_sort depression, mental distress, and domestic conflict among louisiana women exposed to the deepwater horizon oil spill in the watch study
topic Research
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5010393/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27164620
http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/EHP167
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