To examine the expression of war-related trauma as manifested by DSM-III-R rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depressive disorder in two generations of Cambodian refugees living in the western United States. A probability sample of 209 Khmer adolescents and one of their parents were interviewed using portions of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School-Age Children-Epidemiologic Version and the PTSD section of the Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents. Interviews were conducted in English by a master's-level clinician with a Khmer interpreter. PTSD was found to be significantly related across parent-child generations. A nonsignificant generational trend was also found for depressive disorders. A number of environmental variables measured in the study (amount of reported war trauma, loss, living arrangements, treatment received, socioeconomic status) were not related to these findings. Parents were more likely to report an earlier onset of PTSD symptoms. This study suggests that PTSD in refugees may cluster in families. Whether this phenomenon is caused by a genetic susceptibility to trauma awaits further research. PTSD and depressive disorders in refugee populations, while often comorbid, appear to follow different courses over time. © 1995, The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. All rights reserved.

posttraumatic stress disorder Refugees cross-generational trauma

Parents depression refugee Cambodia human Refugees priority journal morbidity Depressive Disorder Intergenerational Relations interview United States social status family life Adolescent male female Psychiatric Status Rating Scales Article Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S. Retrospective Studies genetic susceptibility major clinical study adult gender migration posttraumatic stress disorder Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic social class child parent relation