Who Has PTSD?
The National Institute of Mental health estimates that about 4 percent of American adults ages 18-54 suffer from PTSD in a given year. These people have served in wars, have been raped or mugged, lived through natural disasters, terrorist attacks or car or plane crashes. About a third of combat veterans eventually suffer from PTSD and nearly half of the three million Americans involved in serious car accidents each year eventually develop the disorder. First-responders like firemen, EMTs and police officers are also at risk for PTSD-particularly when children are involved, research suggests. Likewise, journalists covering catastrophes are similarly susceptible to PTSD. Taken together, the DSM indicates about 5% of American men and 10% of American women have the disorder.

	Common causes of PTSD are natural disasters, terrorist attacks, car and plane crashes

Rates of PTSD are higher in children.

Studies suggest up to 43% of boys and girls have experienced at least one trauma that could induce PTSD. Among kids who have witnessed the murder of or attack on a parent, the rates of PTSD are as high as 100%. It is not known how the age of a child affects his or her susceptibility to PTSD, but girls appear to be more at risk than boys.

PTSD manifests itself in some different ways in children than in adults. Young children may regress somewhat, losing an acquired skill such as toilet training. Older children may experience what psychologists call "time skew," which means children get the chronology of the trauma confused. Children may also experience "omen formation," which means they believe there were warnings they could have heeded to avoid catastrophe. Finally, children often reenact the traumatic event during play.

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