Traumatic grief among adolescents exposed to a peer's suicide.

OBJECTIVE: The phenomenology of grief among children and adolescents is not well studied. A syndrome of traumatic grief, distinct from depression and anxiety, has been described among bereaved adults. The purpose of this study was to describe the symptoms and course of traumatic grief among adolescents exposed to a peer’s suicide and to examine the relationship between traumatic grief and depression and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in this population. METHOD: A total of 146 friends and acquaintances of 26 suicide victims were included in this study. Subjects were interviewed at 6, 12–18, and 36 months after the peer’s suicide. A subgroup was also interviewed 6 years afterward. The Texas Revised Inventory of Grief was administered at 6, 12–18, and 36 months; the Inventory of Complicated Grief was administered at the 6-year assessment. RESULTS: Principal component analysis of the Texas Revised Inventory of Grief resulted in two factors: one assessing a traumatic grief reaction and another assessing ...