Social support and psychosomatic health among paraplegic victims of Wenchuan earthquake and Tangshan earthquake

Objective To study the status of psychosomatic health and social support among paraplegic victims of Wenchuan earthquake and Tangshan earthquake.Methods Totally 127 paraplegic victims of Wenchuan earthquake were surveyed with Symptom Check list 90(SCL-90)and Social Support Revalued Scale(SSRS)and the results of the survey were compared to the historical data on 64 paraplegic victims(31 in a rehabilitation center and 33 in a sanatorium)of Tangshan earthquake.Results There were significant differences in the scores of hostility(0.88±0.82 vs. 0.38±0.33)and other domains(1.10±0.67 vs. 0.60±0.62)of SCL-90 between the male and female paraplegic victims of Wenchuan earthquake(P<0.05 for all); the score of objective support of the employed victims(8.87±3.11) was significantly higher than that of the unemployed victims(6.17±1.76)(P<0.01).There were significant differences in the overall score of SCL-90(121.48±23.86,165.12±57.30,68.91±52.35),the score of objective support(17.71±3.99,11.00±5.20,7.39±2.78),the score of subjective support(6.84±1.77,5.79±3.66,18.36±4.35),and the score of social support utilization(6.68±2.24,6.12±2.00,7.03±1.88)among the Tangshan earthquake paraplegic victims in the rehabilitation center and in the sanatorium,and the Wenchuan earthquake paraplegic victims(P<0.001 for all)Conclusion The Wenchuan earthquake paraplegic victims had better mental health status and social support than those of Tangshan earthquake.