Social support and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in earthquake survivors: a systematic review

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is one of the most common psychological traumas after earthquake. Social support is suggested as a protective factor, but the impact of social support on the prevention and reduction of PTSD among earthquake survivors is still unknown. This systematic review aims to explore the effectiveness of social support in prevention and reduction of PTSD in earthquake survivors. An electronic search was conducted in Medline, PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane library, PsycINFO, and CINAHL, including systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials (RCTs), cohort studies, case control studies, cross-sectional surveys, and case studies. The initial search identified 1,202 articles, 748 were duplicates, 454 were excluded by abstract evaluation and 37 excluded based on full text appraisal, and 14 articles were finally included. The results of the included studies indicated an overall possible positive effect for social support for prevention of PTSD. However, the relationship is not a direct effect, and many confounding factors seems to play a role in this complex situation, such as gender, previous history of violent trauma, and self-efficacy. Future studies have to identify people who are prone to PTSD and can benefit from receiving social support, and they have to also make it clear what can constitute an effective social support.