Prospective Examination of Early Associations of Iraq War Zone Deployment, Combat Severity, and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder with New Incident Medical Diagnoses

• Published in: Journal of traumatic stress 2018-02, Vol.31 (1), p.102-113
• Main Authors: Brailey, Kevin, Mills, Mary Alice, Marx, Brian P., Proctor, Susan P., Seal, Karen H., Spiro, Avron, Ulloa, Erin W., Vasterling, Jennifer J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: deployment health; Iraq War; Iraq War-2003; Medical diagnosis; Medical disorders; Military deployment; Morbidity; Post traumatic stress disorder; prospective; PTSD
• ISSN: 0894-9867; 1573-6598
• DOI: 10.1002/jts.22264

War zone deployment and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been associated with morbidity and mortality decades later. Less is known about the associations between these variables and the early emergence of medical disorders in war zone veterans. This prospective study of 862 U.S. Army soldiers (n = 569 deployed; n = 293 nondeployed) examined: (a) associations between Iraq War deployment status (deployed vs. nondeployed) and new medical diagnoses that emerged within six months after return from Iraq among all participants; and (b) associations between combat severity and PTSD symptoms, and new postdeployment medical diagnoses that emerged within 12 months after return from Iraq within deployed participants. New medical diagnoses were ed from diagnostic codes associated with clinical outpatient visits recorded within the Department of Defense Standard Ambulatory Data Record database. Combat severity was measured with the Combat Experiences module of the Deployment Risk and Resilience Inventory, and postdeployment posttraumatic stress disorder symptom severity was measured using the PTSD Checklist–Civilian. Neither deployment nor combat severity was associated with new medical diagnoses. However, among deployed soldiers, more severe PTSD symptoms were associated with increased risk for a new medical disorder diagnosis; every 10‐point increase in PTSD symptoms increased odds of a new diagnosis by nearly 20% (odds ratio = 1.20). Results suggest that PTSD symptoms are associated with early morbidity in Iraq War veterans. Resumen Spanish s by the Asociación Chilena de Estrés Traumático (ACET) Examen prospectivo de las primeras asociaciones del despliegue en zonas de guerra en Irak, gravedad de combate, y TEPT con nuevos diagnósticos médicos incidentales DESPLIEGUE, COMBATE, TEPT Y DIAGNÓSTICOS MÉDICOS El despliegue en zonas de guerra y el trastorno de estrés postraumático (TEPT) se han asociado con la morbilidad y la mortalidad décadas más tarde. Se sabe menos acerca de las asociaciones entre estas variables y la aparición temprana de trastornos médicos en los veteranos de zona de guerra. Este estudio prospectivo de 862 soldados del ejército de EEUU (N = 569 desplegados, n = 293 no desplegados) examinó: (a) asociaciones entre el despliegue de guerra en Irak (desplegado versus no desplegado) y nuevos diagnósticos médicos que surgieron dentro de los seis meses después del retorno de Irak entre todos los participantes; y (b) asociaciones entre la severidad d