Elsevier

Clinical Oncology

Volume 23, Issue 4, May 2011, Pages 297-305
Clinical Oncology

Overview
A 25 Year Retrospective Review of the Psychological Consequences of the Chernobyl Accident

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clon.2011.01.501Get rights and content

Abstract

The Chernobyl Forum Report from the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster concluded that mental health effects were the most significant public health consequence of the accident. This paper provides an updated review of research on the psychological impact of the accident during the 25 year period since the catastrophe began. First responders and clean-up workers had the greatest exposure to radiation. Recent studies show that their rates of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder remain elevated two decades later. Very young children and those in utero who lived near the plant when it exploded or in severely contaminated areas have been the subject of considerable research, but the findings are inconsistent. Recent studies of prenatally exposed children conducted in Kiev, Norway and Finland point to specific neuropsychological and psychological impairments associated with radiation exposure, whereas other studies found no significant cognitive or mental health effects in exposed children grown up. General population studies report increased rates of poor self-rated health as well as clinical and subclinical depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Mothers of young children exposed to the disaster remain a high-risk group for these conditions, primarily due to lingering worries about the adverse health effects on their families. Thus, long-term mental health consequences continue to be a concern. The unmet need for mental health care in affected regions remains an important public health challenge 25 years later. Future research is needed that combines physical and mental health outcome measures to complete the clinical picture.

Section snippets

Statement of Search Strategies Used and Sources of Information

This report builds on our previous review of the psychological effects of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster covering the first 20 years after the accident [1]. We searched both PubMed and Google Scholar for articles published in English peer-reviewed journals since 1986, but with a particular emphasis on research published from 2005 to 2010. The key words used were Chernobyl, ionising radiation, neuropsychology, depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, cognitive,

Clean-up Workers

An estimated 600 000 clean-up workers, or liquidators, both civilian and military personnel, were recruited from throughout the Soviet Union. As noted in our previous review [1], there have been two lines of psychological research on clean-up workers, one focused on potential radiation-related cognitive impairment and the other examining the psychiatric effects of exposure-related stress. The studies described below are summarised in Table 1.

Four studies conducted in Kiev provide suggestive

Cognitive Impairment and Emotional Wellbeing of Exposed Children

In light of the increased rate of severe mental retardation among in utero A-bomb survivors [18], substantial concern arose about the developing brain of exposed children who were in utero or infants when the Chernobyl accident occurred, even though the highest exposure was well below the lowest level linked to mental retardation in A-bomb survivors [1]. The first systematic study of neurocognitive functioning was the International Pilot Study of Brain Damage In-Utero, designed by the World

Population-based Morbidity Studies

A handful of surveys have been conducted on the mental health of adult populations in the affected regions (Table 3). The earliest investigation was conducted by the International Atomic Energy Agency in 1990 in contaminated and uncontaminated (by radiation) villages in Belarus, Ukraine and Russia (summarised in Ref. [7]). This study included items about psychological distress and disturbances and found higher rates of psychological distress and concerns about health in exposed villagers

Discussion

Chernobyl was a massive catastrophe that impacted millions of people in the former Soviet Union and beyond. The ongoing public debate and uncertainty about the medical repercussions of the accident in the media and in official and unofficial reports have meant that the event is very much current for the affected populations [48]. There is no doubt that Chernobyl had an effect on the mental health of adults directly affected by the event, especially the liquidators and women with young children,

Acknowledgements

The research undertaken by the authors in Refs. [23], [24], [25], [26], [27] was supported by National Institute of Mental Health grant 51947.

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