Jul 19, 2011 13:44 GMT  ·  By

Injuries or traumatic experiences oftentimes result in people being left at a heightened risk of developing depression or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Now, experts at the University of Pennsylvania announce the creation of a simple survey that can identify traumatized persons.

The test can be used to determine which of the people who passed through adverse situations is at an increased risk of developing depression or PTSD. Finding the disorders early on can be very beneficial for patients, as doctors will find it easier to treat them.

At this point, more than 30 million people in the United States alone seek hospital treatment for injuries every single year. UP expert Therese S. Richmond, PhD, CRNP, says that the eight-question survey she and her team develop can tease out individuals at risk of developing mental disorders as a result.

The thing about injuries is that even seemingly-minor ones can cause a traumatic stress responses in predisposed people. On the other hand, it is unfeasible to provide the appropriate resources for all people who got injured in some way.

By applying the new test, the scarce resources doctors have can be distributed among people who actually need them with increased efficiency, providing more protection for a vulnerable group.

“Depression and PTSD exert a significant, independent, and persistent effect on general health, work status, somatic symptoms, adjustment to illness, and function after injury,” the researchers write in a scientific paper accompanying the findings.

Details of the work are published in the latest issue of the medical journal General Hospital Psychiatry.

Mental health resources are very costly nowadays, and so they need to be allocated judiciously. At this time, this is done only at times, for the simple reason that doctors have to take preemptive action on the cases they consider to be the most severe, PsychCentral reports.

Putting an early diagnosis of these disabling disorders can further reduce the costs associated with treating them. The test the UP team developed can be applied swiftly in a hospital setting.

Whenever doctors detect an at-risk person, they can instruct them what symptoms to be on the lookout for, and to report back to the hospital whenever they notice them. This approach could contribute to making the mental healthcare system more efficient.

The test is remarkably efficient when it comes to teasing out individuals who are at higher risk. None of the people who tested negative for PTSD risk on this scale went on to develop the condition, and only 5 percent of those who tested negative for depression developed the disorder.