The Course and Correlates of Combat-Related PTSD in Australian Vietnam Veterans in the Three Decades After the War. 2017

Brian I O'Toole, and Stanley V Catts
Brain & Mind Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.

Australian male Vietnam veterans (N = 388) were assessed 22 and 36 years after their return to Australia using standardized diagnostic interviews, with added data from Army records and self-report questionnaires. Among veterans who ever had posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 50.3% had a current diagnosis at the second assessment; of those who had a current diagnosis at Wave 1, 46.9% were also current at Wave 2. Late onset occurred for 19.0% of veterans, of whom 60.8% were current at Wave 2. Multivariate analysis compared veterans with no history of PTSD (n = 231) with veterans who had ever had PTSD (n = 157) to assess risk factors for PTSD incidence; and veterans with a history, but not current PTSD (n = 78) with veterans who had current PTSD at the second assessment (n = 79) to assess risk factors for failure to remit. Incidence was associated with lower education, shorter Army training predeployment, higher combat, excess drinking, and help-seeking after return to Australia. Prevalence was associated with having a father who saw combat in World War II, being injured in battle, having a lower intelligence test score, experiencing higher combat, and having a diagnosis of phobia at the first assessment. Only combat was common to incidence and prevalence.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007360 Intelligence The ability to learn and to deal with new situations and to deal effectively with tasks involving abstractions.
D008297 Male Males
D008875 Middle Aged An adult aged 45 - 64 years. Middle Age
D010698 Phobic Disorders Anxiety disorders in which the essential feature is persistent and irrational fear of a specific object, activity, or situation that the individual feels compelled to avoid. The individual recognizes the fear as excessive or unreasonable. Claustrophobia,Neuroses, Phobic,Phobia, School,Phobias,Phobic Neuroses,Scolionophobia,Disorder, Phobic,Phobia,Phobic Disorder,School Phobia
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000067398 War-Related Injuries WOUNDS and INJURIES and PSYCHOLOGICAL TRAUMA sustained during WAR. War-Related Trauma,Injuries, War-Related,Injury, War-Related,Trauma, War-Related,War Related Injuries,War Related Trauma,War-Related Injury
D000293 Adolescent A person 13 to 18 years of age. Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths
D000328 Adult A person having attained full growth or maturity. Adults are of 19 through 44 years of age. For a person between 19 and 24 years of age, YOUNG ADULT is available. Adults
D000368 Aged A person 65 years of age or older. For a person older than 79 years, AGED, 80 AND OVER is available. Elderly
D001315 Australia The smallest continent and an independent country, comprising six states and two territories. Its capital is Canberra. Canton and Enderbury Islands,Christmas Island,Christmas Island (Australia)

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