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SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1475459
This article is part of the Research Topic Mental Health of Vulnerable Groups: Predictors, Mechanisms, and Interventions View all 9 articles

Effects of volcanic eruptions on the mental health of exposed populations: a systematic review

Provisionally accepted
Danae Auxiliadora Mendoza Danae Auxiliadora Mendoza José Manuel Reales José Manuel Reales *Soledad Ballesteros Soledad Ballesteros
  • National University of Distance Education (UNED), Madrid, Spain

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Introduction: Millions of people living in volcanic environments are at risk of experiencing volcanic eruptions, a natural disaster. This systematic review aimed to collect empirical evidence of the effects of volcanic eruptions on the mental health of the exposed populations. Methods: Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines, we conducted systematic searches on Scopus, PubMed, PsycINFO, Medline, and Web of Science (WoS) databases. Results: A total of 17,044 articles were screened. Of these, 24 articles met the inclusion criteria and data were extracted. Twenty-one articles investigated psychological disorders, 2 articles studied emotions and their relationships with certain environmental factors, and 1 article explored cognitive functions in the exposed populations. These studies showed that highly exposed populations were more vulnerable to develop long-lasting psychological disorders than less exposed populations. Conclusions: The negative influence of experiencing volcanic activity on mental health was confirmed. Clearly, there is a need for more research to improve the mental health of the populations highly exposed to volcanic eruptions. Recommendations for future research are also included.

    Keywords: Anxiety, Depression, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), stress, volcano

    Received: 03 Aug 2024; Accepted: 25 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Mendoza, Reales and Ballesteros. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: José Manuel Reales, National University of Distance Education (UNED), Madrid, Spain

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