Enduring Impacts of Chemical Weapons on The Overall Well-Being of Kurdish Survivors
摘要
Limited research exists on how exposure to chemical weapons impacts the biopsychosocial well-being of civilians. This retrospective study evaluated and compared the quality of life (QoL) and mental health of two groups of Kurdish civilian survivors of Chemical Warfare Agents (CWAs) attacks, who had resettled in Sweden (n = 18) as well as survivors who still lived in Kurdistan-Iraq (n = 20). The RAND Short Form Health Survey 36 (RAND SF-36) was used to assess QoL, and the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale-Self Assessment (MADRS-S) was used to measure depressive symptoms. Both groups showed moderate depressive symptoms and lower-than-average quality of life scores, suggesting a significant reduction in their QoL. While those in Sweden had better physical well-being, the groups had no significant differences in mental well-being. The findings suggest a link between reduced quality of life and depressive symptoms, regardless of where the survivors lived. Overall, this highlights the importance of providing targeted support to improve the mental health and quality of life of survivors exposed to CWAs.