Understanding Neurocognitive Impairment After Trauma Exposure

Individuals living in Canterbury (New Zealand) have experienced significant stress related to the Canterbury earthquake sequence. Previous research conducted at the Department of Psychological Medicine (Christchurch, New Zealand) has shown significant cognitive difficulties in a group of Cantabrians exposed to high levels of earthquake trauma. A high proportion (30%) perceive themselves to have significant cognitive difficulties, even seven years post-earthquake. People who perceive that they have cognitive difficulties find this distressing and tend to function less well in work and parenting. Understanding pathways underlying cognitive difficulties in the population is vital for developing appropriate treatments and strategies to help with this.

This will be the first study to investigate rates of, and factors contributing to, perceived cognitive difficulties in a large population exposed to multiple stressors and is important for the population of Canterbury, and populations affected by natural and man-made disasters worldwide.

Four hundred and sixty people who were exposed to the Canterbury earthquake sequence will be recruited from the Christchurch Health and Development Study (CHDS). Psychological, cognitive, functional and biological factors will be compared between those with the greatest levels of perceived cognitive difficulty and those with the lowest levels of difficulty. This will determine what factors relate most strongly to perceived cognitive difficulties, which will in turn be used to develop treatments for this population.