RÉSUMÉ
Objective To evaluate the changes in the mental health status of the Wenchuan earthquake survivors in relation to their transfer to other provinces. Methods Sixty-eight survivors of the Wenchuan earthquake were evaluated for the mental health status using the Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) before and after transfer to other provinces. Results The score of SAS of these survivors decreased significantly after the transfer (42.78±7.95 before transfer vs 38.15±7.55 after transfer, P<0.05), and the SDS score also decreased significantly (45.40±9.30 vs 40.84±9.20, P<0.05). The transfer was associated with a significant reduction in both the SAS and SDS scores of the survivors irrespective of the injuries sustained in the earthquake. After the transfer, the survivors without injuries showed significantly lower SAS scores than those sustaining injuries in the earthquake (P<0.05), but the SDS scores either before or after the transfer have no statistical significance between the 2 groups (P>0.05). Conclusion Transfer to other provinces may help relieve the anxiety and depression in both the injured and non-injured survivors in a short period for the benefit of their psychological rehabilitation.