Traditional illness, curing, and mortality: A 20-year community study in Mexico

The primary purpose of this present study was to gain additional understanding of susto, an illness not recognized by conventional Western medicine, and to continue a scientific endeavor that employed a cross-cultural, longitudinal approach. Susto (soul-loss) is an illness found in the Hispanic culture brought on by a fright or unsettling experience, which left untreated may develop physical symptoms. The major and recurring theme woven into the purpose and objectives of this research was the impact that adult education can exert in solving the problems involving cultural diversity in the clinical setting. Modern professional health care can no longer exclude cross-cultural comparisons of healing systems (Kleinman, 1980, p. 375). This study elaborated findings in the monumental work of Rubel, O\u27Nell, and Collado-Ardon (1984) in Oaxaca, Mexico, that demonstrated the interrelationship of social, psychological, and physical dimensions of susto. Findings suggested an association between susto and increased mortality. The mortality factor was investigated by a follow-up study conducted with the sample population established in 1971. This sample population of 96 persons consisted of susto (experimental) and non-susto (control) groups matched by age and sex of a clinical population in three linguistically different Oaxacan communities. The major quantitative research question, whether susto persons die sooner, was supported. Ethnographic or qualitative data of this study examined susto from the standpoint of community change, beliefs concerning causes of death, and the role of the curer in the Mestizo village of residence, El Rosario. The five identified curers of the village were interviewed on audiotape as to their life history, training, and practice. The data were analyzed according to categories for future comparative studies. Availability of medical and educational services in no way diminished the cultural beliefs about death nor the incidence and curing of susto. The popular belief is that medical terms or medical explanations of death are merely the symptoms while people really die of difficult and sad experiences. The fatal consequence of susto left untreated warrants the existence of the curers