ABSTRACT
As described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: Fourth Edition Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), the essential feature (criterion A) of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is exposure to an extreme traumatic stressor in which the person experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or events that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of self or others; and responded with intense fear, helplessness, horror, or, in children, disorganized or agitated behaviors [1]. The DSM-IV-TR diagnosis of PTSD is made when criterion A is experienced and when three clusters of categorical symptoms are present for > 1 month after the traumatic event(s): (1) intrusive reexperiencing of the trauma(s) (criterion B); (2) persistent avoidance of stimuli associated with the trauma(s) (criterion C); and (3) persistent symptoms of increased physiological arousal (criterion D).
