Social, political and health related effects of “European migrant crisis” are challenging our Old Continent, not always capable to address immigrants’ needs.

Our main purpose is to estimate the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among asylum seekers arriving in Italy.

We designed a cross-sectional study for prevalence estimation in a reception centre where asylum seekers stay for their first period in Italy. They are given hospitality until the possibility of their permanence is verified. We created a survey asking for general information. Participants also received PTSD Checklist (PCL-C). In our analysis, we adopted 45 as cut-off for diagnosis. Questionnaires have been delivered house-to-house and collected when completed.

In this pilot study, we collected 61 questionnaires. The majority of answers came from male subjects (46). The prevalence of PTSD was 44% (47% among men and 53% among women, not statistically different).

So high rate of PTSD depicts a reality that cannot be left apart. Our attention toward immigrants must focus also on their mental health. European Union should consider new solutions to take care of these critical aspects of those.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.