Article

STRESS SYMPTOMATOLOGY AMONG VIETNAM VETERANS: ANALYSIS OF THE VETERANS ADMINISTRATION SURVEY OF VETERANS II

Psychiatry Service, Medical Center, St. Louis, MO 63125.
American Journal of Epidemiology (impact factor: 5.22). 08/1988; DOI:cgi/content/short/128/1/85
Source: OAI

ABSTRACT In 1979, the US Veterans Administration conducted a health survey of 11,230 veterans. The present analysis of these data focuses on the association between Vietnam service and combat experience with eight post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms among the 1,787 Vietnam era veterans who entered military service between 1965 and 1975. The advantages of this study are that it includes a large random sample selected from the total US population, had a high interview response rate (93%), and collected data prior to the recent public controversy surrounding the issue of the health effects of possible exposure of Vietnam veterans to Agent Orange. After adjustment for the potential confounding effects of military service and demographic factors, the level of combat exposure was significantly associated with all eight symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder in a dose response pattern. For seven of the eight symptoms, a twofold increase in the factor-adjusted prevalence odds ratio was observed when non-Vietnam service veterans were compared with Vietnam veterans who experienced the most intense combat experience. Being younger, less well educated, or nonwhite at the time of military service are factors which independently further increased the probability of stress symptoms.

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    D Mossman
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Keywords

1,787 Vietnam era veterans
 
combat experience
 
demographic factors
 
dose response pattern
 
eight symptoms
 
factor-adjusted prevalence odds ratio
 
health survey
 
intense combat experience
 
interview response rate
 
large random sample
 
military service
 
non-Vietnam service veterans
 
post-traumatic stress disorder
 
post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms
 
present analysis
 
recent public controversy
 
stress symptoms
 
twofold increase
 
Vietnam service
 
Vietnam veterans