Table 3.
- Physical symptoms experienced by the study participants based on being a case of PTSD or not* (N= 279).
| Characteristics | Non-case of PTSD n (%) |
A case of PTSD n (%) |
Total n (%) |
χ2 P-value |
| Stomach pain | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 44 (41.5) | 62 (58.5) | 106 (38.0) | χ2=9.1 p=0.011 |
| Bothered a little | 29 (28.7) | 72 (71.3) | 101 (36.0) | |
| Bothered a lot | 15 (20.8) | 57 (79.2) | 72 (26.0) | |
| Back pain | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 34 (39.1) | 53 (60.9) | 87 (31.2) | χ2=7.99 p=0.018 |
| Bothered a little | 37 (34.6) | 70 (65.4) | 107 (38.3) | |
| Bothered a lot | 17 (20.0) | 68 (80.0) | 85 (30.5) | |
| Pain in your arms, legs, or joints (knees, hips, and so on) | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 45(46.4) | 52(53.6) | 97 (34.8) | χ2=23.0 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 29 (33.7) | 57 (66.3) | 86 (30.8) | |
| Bothered a lot | 14 (14.6) | 82 (85.4) | 96 (34.4) | |
| Menstrual cramps or other problems with periods (female, n=133) | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 15 (28.3) | 38 (71.7) | 53 (39.9) | χ2=5.53 p=0.063 |
| Bothered a little | 10 (23.3) | 33 (76.7) | 43 (32.3) | |
| Bothered a lot | 3 (08.1) | 34 (91.9) | 37 (27.8) | |
| Headaches | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 30 (50.0) | 30 (50.0) | 60 (21.5) | χ2=25.9 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 44 (37.3) | 74 (62.7) | 118 (42.3) | |
| Bothered a lot | 14 (13.9) | 87 (86.1) | 101 (36.2) | |
| Chest pain | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 27 (18.4) | 90 (61.2) | 147 (52.7) | χ2= 7.54 p=0.023 |
| Bothered a little | 20 (23.8) | 64 (76.2) | 84 (30.1) | |
| Bothered a lot | 11 (22.9) | 37 (77.1) | 48 (17.2) | |
| Dizziness | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 54 (42.5) | 73 (57.5) | 127 (45.5) | χ2= 17.3 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 24 (29.6) | 57 (70.4) | 81 (29.1) | |
| Bothered a lot | 10 (14.1) | 61 (85.9) | 71 (25.4) | |
| Fainting spells | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 68 (32.1) | 144 (67.9) | 212 (76.0) | χ2=0.255 p=0.880 |
| Bothered a little | 14 (28.6) | 35 (71.4) | 49 (17.6) | |
| Bothered a lot | 6 (33.3) | 12 (66.7) | 18 (6.4) | |
| Feeling your heart pound or race | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 53 (40.2) | 79 (59.8) | 132 (47.3) | χ2=9.23 p=0.003 |
| Bothered a little | 27 (25.7) | 78 (74.3) | 105 (37.6) | |
| Bothered a lot | 8 (19.0) | 34 (81.0) | 42 (15.1) | |
| Shortness of breath | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 47 (42.7) | 63 (57.3) | 110 (39.4) | χ2=21.6 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 35 (33.7) | 69 (66.3) | 104 (37.3) | |
| Bothered a lot | 6 (9.2) | 59 (90.8) | 65 (23.3) | |
| Pain or problems during sexual intercourse | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 54 (37.8) | 89 (62.2) | 143 (51.2) | χ2=11.3 p=0.004 |
| Bothered a little | 27 (32.9) | 55 (67.1) | 82 (29.4) | |
| Bothered a lot | 7 (13.0) | 47 (87.0) | 54 (19.4) | |
| Constipation, loose bowels, or diarrhea | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 47 (37.9) | 77 (62.1) | 124 (44.4) | χ2=7.92 p=0.019 |
| Bothered a little | 33 (31.4) | 72 (68.6) | 105 (37.6) | |
| Bothered a lot | 8 (16.0) | 42 (84.0) | 50 (18.0) | |
| Nausea, gas, or indigestion | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 42 (32.6) | 87 (67.4) | 129 (46.2) | χ2=4.07 p=0.131 |
| Bothered a little | 36 (36.0) | 64 (64.0) | 100 (35.8) | |
| Bothered a lot | 10 (20.0) | 40 (80.0) | 50 (18.0) | |
| Characteristics | Non-case of PTSD n (%) |
A case of PTSD n (%) |
Total n (%) |
χ2 P-value |
| Feeling tired or having low energy | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 29 (41.4) | 41 (58.6) | 70 (25.1) | χ2=31.7 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 50 (43.5) | 65 (56.5) | 115 (41.2) | |
| Bothered a lot | 9 (9.6) | 85 (90.4) | 94 (33.7) | |
| Trouble sleeping | ||||
| Not bothered at all | 37 (46.8 | 42 (53.2) | 79 (28.3) | χ2=37.1 p<0.001 |
| Bothered a little | 43 (41.3) | 61 (83.9) | 104 (37.3) | |
| Bothered a lot | 8 (08.3) | 88 (91.7) | 96 (34.4) | |
Values are presented as number and percentage (%). *Mean score >2.5 on the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire (HTQ)-16’s sub-items or entire scale (HTQ-45) indicated a case of PTSD, χ2: Chi-square, p: significant level