Posttraumatic stress disorder according to DSM-5 and DSM-IV diagnostic criteria : a comparison in a sample of Congolese ex-combatants

Abstract

Compared to DSM-IV, the criteria for diagnosing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been modified in DSM-5.

The first aim of this study was to examine how these modifications impact rates of PTSD in a sample of Congolese ex-combatants. The second goal of this study was to investigate whether PTSD symptoms were associated with perpetrator-related acts or victim-related traumatic events.

Ninety-five male ex-combatants in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo were interviewed. Both the DSM-IV and the DSM-5 PTSD symptom criteria were assessed.

The DSM-5 symptom criteria yielded a PTSD rate of 50% (n=47), whereas the DSM-IV symptom criteria were met by 44% (n=42). If the DSM-5 would be set as the current “gold standard,” then DSM-IV would have produced more false negatives (8%) than false positives (3%). A minority of participants (19%, n=18) indicated an event during which they were involved as a perpetrator as their most stressful event. Results of a regression analysis (R 2=0.40) showed that, after accounting for the number of types of traumatic events, perpetrated violent acts were not associated with the symptom severity of PTSD.

The findings demonstrate that more diagnostic cases were produced with the DSM-5 diagnostic rules than were dropped resulting in an increase in PTSD rates compared to the DSM-IV system. The missing association between PTSD symptoms and perpetrated violent acts might be explained by a potential fascinating and excited perception of these acts.