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S054-2

Anxiety symptoms in Children and Adolescents Exposed to the “5.12”Wenchuan
Earthquake: a Follow-Up Study

Tao Li, Wang Huiyao, Guo Wanjun, Xu Jiajun, Kang Yukun, Li Bin, Xu Yan, Qiu Changjian, Hu
Xun

Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, China

Background/Objective: In order to investigate the dynamic change of anxiety symptoms in children
and adolescents who exposed to the “5.12” Wenchuan Earthquake, we performed a survey at the
13-th month and 31-th month after the “5.12”Wenchuan Earthquake in the primary and middle
school students in Qingxi Township in Qingchuan County, one of the worst hit areas during the
Wenchuan Earthquake. The self-reported demographic data and earthquake exposure experiences
were collected, and the self-reported anxiety symptoms were assessed using the Revised Children’s
Manifest Anxiety Scale (RCMAS). The individuals with RCMAS≥19 were defined as having anxiety
symptoms. 719 students aged from 7 to15 years completed self-reported surveys. The overall
self-reported anxiety symptoms were 43.1% and 26.8% at the first and the second surveys
respectively. Although the anxiety symptoms decreased from the 13-th month to the 31-th month
after the earthquake, it was still higher among those children. Some factors related to the earthquake
exposure were significantly associated with the anxiety symptoms at the 13-th month after the
earthquake and its remission in future.