1
|
Maeda M, Harigane M, Horikoshi N, Takebayashi Y, Sato H, Takahashi A, Momoi M, Goto S, Oikawa Y, Mizuki R, Miura I, Itagaki S, Yabe H, Ohira T, Yasumura S, Ohto H, Kamiya K. Long-Term, Community-based Approach for Affected People Having Problems With Mental Health and Lifestyle Issues After the 2011 Fukushima Disaster: the Fukushima Health Management Survey. J Epidemiol 2022; 32:S47-S56. [PMID: 36464300 PMCID: PMC9703932 DOI: 10.2188/jea.je20210178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/07/2022] Open
Abstract
A Mental Health and Lifestyle Survey (MHLS) has been conducted yearly as part of the Fukushima Health Management Survey since 2012, in order to monitor different health issues related to long-term evacuation of affected people after the 2011 Fukushima disaster. This survey is a mail-based one of nearly 210,000 affected people living in the evacuation zone at the time of the disaster. Another purpose of the MHLS is to provide efficient interventions by telephone based on the results of the survey. Significant findings contributing to understanding of non-radiological health effects caused by long-term evacuation were obtained from the MHLS, directly connecting to telephone-based interventions for over 3,000 respondents per year. In this article, the mental health outcomes of the MHLS, including depressive symptoms and posttraumatic responses, are reviewed, and the usefulness of telephone-based interventions is discussed. The evidence showed that, despite improvement of core mental health outcomes, the prevalence of respondents at high risk of some psychiatric problems remained high compared to that among the general population in Japan. In particular, several mental health consequences of respondents staying outside of Fukushima Prefecture were higher than those staying inside Fukushima. Along with further efforts to increase the response rate, we need to continue and modify the MHLS to meet the requirements of the affected people and communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Masaharu Maeda
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan,Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Mayumi Harigane
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Naoko Horikoshi
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Yui Takebayashi
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan,Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Hideki Sato
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan,Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Atsushi Takahashi
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Gastroenterology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Maho Momoi
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan,Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Saori Goto
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan,Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Yuichi Oikawa
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Rie Mizuki
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Itaru Miura
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Shuntaro Itagaki
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Hirooki Yabe
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Neuropsychiatry, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Tetsuya Ohira
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Epidemiology Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Seiji Yasumura
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Public Health, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Ohto
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Department of Blood Transfusion and Transplantation Immunology, Fukushima Medical University School of Medicine, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Kenji Kamiya
- Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan,Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Oe M, Takebayashi Y, Sato H, Maeda M. Mental Health Consequences of the Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima Nuclear Disasters: A Scoping Review. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2021; 18:ijerph18147478. [PMID: 34299933 PMCID: PMC8304648 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph18147478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Revised: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 07/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Many individuals who were affected by the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami and the subsequent Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident continue to face a challenging recovery. We reviewed the long-term mental health consequences of three major nuclear power plant accidents: the Three Mile Island (TMI, 1979), Chernobyl (1986), and Fukushima (2011) nuclear disasters. We examined the relevant prospective cohort studies and before-and-after studies that covered more than two timepoints, searching four databases (PubMed, Ichushi, PsyArticles, and PTSDPub). We identified a total of 35 studies: TMI, n = 11; Chernobyl, n = 6; and Fukushima, n = 18. The smaller numbers of early-phase studies (within 6 months) of the Chernobyl and Fukushima disasters may also indicate the chaotic situation at those timepoints, as large-scale interviews were conducted in the early phase after the TMI disaster. Although the patterns of effects on mental health outcomes were diverse, more than half of the participants in the studies we evaluated were categorized into low or under-threshold symptom groups in all three disasters. Across the three disasters, the radiation exposure level estimated by the proximity and stigma were the common risk factors for mental health outcomes. Our findings will contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the impact of the worst nuclear accidents in history on the affected individuals' mental health, and our results illustrate the longitudinal consequences of such disasters.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Misari Oe
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Kurume University, Asahi-machi 67, Kurume 830-0011, Japan
- Correspondence:
| | - Yui Takebayashi
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima 960-1295, Japan; (Y.T.); (H.S.); (M.M.)
| | - Hideki Sato
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima 960-1295, Japan; (Y.T.); (H.S.); (M.M.)
| | - Masaharu Maeda
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima 960-1295, Japan; (Y.T.); (H.S.); (M.M.)
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Disruption of Child Environments and Its Psychological Consequences After the Fukushima Disaster: a Narrative Review Based on the Ecological Systems Model. Curr Psychiatry Rep 2021; 23:49. [PMID: 34196819 DOI: 10.1007/s11920-021-01263-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW A high prevalence of clinically significant mental health problems was found in children affected by the Fukushima disaster in Japan. We reviewed the literature on child mental health to examine how disasters impacted children in Fukushima. RECENT FINDINGS Children's environments, such as family and peer systems, were disrupted by radiation concerns and evacuation. As children struggled with less resources at home and school, they also had to deal with discrimination. Various interventions were implemented, ranging from government financial assistance to several mental health services provided by local care resources to families and children. In addition to organizing such interventions discretely in each microsystem, a collaborative approach involving various intervening entities across multiple levels was deemed necessary for providing comprehensive support to the affected children and their families. To promote the healthy psychological development of children, it is necessary to provide multidimensional support for their families, particularly parents, through multidisciplinary collaboration between professionals involved in child and family care.
Collapse
|