Early avoidance of traumatic stimuli predicts chronicity of intrusive thoughts following burn injury

The role of avoidance behavior in perpetuating the experience of intrusive thoughts among burn survivors was investigated. The Impact of Events Scale (IES), which has subscales that measure the frequency of intrusive thoughts and avoidance behavior, was administered to burn survivors (n = 23) upon discharge and four months later. Both avoidance behavior and intrusive thoughts at discharge were significantly related to experiencing intrusive thoughts at four months (r = 0.59, P< 0.003, r = 0.45, P< 0.03, respectively). In a hierarchical regression analysis controlling for intrusive thoughts at discharge, avoidance behavior continued to significantly predict intrusive thoughts at four months [B = 0.43, t(20) = 2.9, P< 0.009]. Limitations of the study and implications for treatment are discussed.