The American journal of psychiatry
-
Each year approximately 2.5 million Americans are hospitalized after sustaining traumatic physical injuries. Few investigations have comprehensively screened for posttraumatic symptomatic distress or identified predictors of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in representative samples of surgical inpatients. ⋯ Clinical and demographic characteristics readily identifiable at the time of surgical inpatient hospitalization predict PTSD symptoms over the year after injury. Effectiveness trials that test screening and intervention procedures for at-risk inpatients should be developed.