Premorbid Profile of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: a Systematic Review of Personality, Somatic, and Demographic Factors

Relevance . Given the growing number of individuals exposed to traumatic events, including combat, road traffic accidents, natural disasters, and violence, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has become an increasingly important clinical and public health concern. Between 13 % and 50 % of trauma-exposed individuals develop clinically significant symptoms; however, the development of PTSD appears to be determined not only by trauma severity but also by individual premorbid vulnerability. Identifying pre-traumatic risk factors is essential for early prevention and personalized approaches, underscoring the relevance of the present review. Intention – to systematize data from studies published between 2020 and 2025 on premorbid personality, somatic, and demographic predictors of PTSD. Methodology . The review focused on premorbid characteristics, including personality traits, sex, age, and somatic status, in individuals exposed to traumatic events. Publications indexed in PubMed, eLibrary, and Scopus and published between 2020 and 2025 were reviewed using relevant keywords. Results and discussion . The review identified negative emotionality (neuroticism), pre-existing mental disorders, sleep disturbances, hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis dysfunction, and a pro-inflammatory state as among the most significant predictors of PTSD. Among somatic risk factors, particular importance was attributed to chronic systemic inflammation, reduced glucocorticoid receptor sensitivity, and comorbid autoimmune diseases, which may contribute to a neurobiological substrate underlying increased stress vulnerability. Female sex was associated with a twofold increase in PTSD risk following civilian trauma, but not in the context of combat-related psychological trauma. Age did not demonstrate an independent predictive role. Conclusion . To enhance the effectiveness of prevention and early intervention, the implementation of comprehensive risk stratification in clinical practice is recommended. Such stratification should integrate the assessment of personality traits, somatic history (with particular emphasis on inflammatory and neuroendocrine markers), and demographic data, prioritizing multidimensional predictive models over isolated singlefactor approaches.