Narrative exposure therapy as a treatment for child war survivors with posttraumatic stress disorder: two case reports and a pilot study in an African refugee settlement

Little data exists on the effectiveness of psychological interventions for children with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that has resulted from exposure to war or conflict-related violence, especially in non-industrialised countries. The authors created and evaluated the efficacy of KIDNET, a child-friendly version of Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET), as a short-term treatment for children. Six Somali children suffering from PTSD aged 12–17 years resident in a refugee settlement in Uganda were treated with four to six individual sessions of KIDNET by expert clinicians. Symptoms of PTSD and depression were assessed pre-treatment, post-treatment and at nine months follow-up. The study concludes that NET may be safe and effective to treat children with war related PTSD in the setting of refugee settlements in developing countries.