ABSTRACT

Background:

Perceived social support (PSS) is one of the most important risk factors for the onset and maintenance of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, however the relationship between PSS and Complex PTSD (CPTSD) is unknown. The evidence-base for CPTSD treatment is currently lacking, though increasingly important given the recent publication of the ICD-11, which now allows for a formal diagnosis of CPTSD.

Objective:

This consensus paper provides an overview of the state of the art in research on the aetiology and treatment of nightmare disorder and outlines further perspectives on these issues. It presents a definition of nightmares and nightmare disorder followed by epidemiological findings, and then explains existing models of nightmare aetiology in traumatized and non‐traumatized individuals.

For the past two decades, there has been substantial debate about whether there are qualitatively different symptom profiles that can develop from different experiences of traumatic events. It has been proposed that more complex symptom profiles, called “complex PTSD,” can emerge from events that involve multiple, chronic or repeated types of traumas that are of an interpersonal nature and from which escape is difficult or impossible such as childhood abuse, domestic violence, genocide campaigns and being a prisoner of war (Herman, 1992).

Persistent complex bereavement disorder (PCBD) is a disorder of grief included in DSM-5. Prolonged grief disorder (PGD) is included in ICD-11. Few studies have evaluated and compared criteria sets for DSM-5 PCBD and ICD-11 PGD. The current study explored and compared the dimensionality, prevalence rates, diagnostic agreement, concurrent validity, and socio-demographic and loss-related correlates of both criteria sets.