Vietnam veterans' rapid recovery from heroin addiction: a fluke or normal expectation?

Between 1972 and 1974, the outcomes of army enlisted men who had served in Vietnam during 1970–71 were evaluated and compared with that of a matched group. This paper reports the major findings of that study with respect to frequency of narcotic addiction in and after Vietnam, and the major risk fac...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Addiction (Abingdon, England) England), 1993-08, Vol.88 (8), p.1041-1054
Main Author: ROBINS, LEE N.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addiction
Addictive behaviors
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
American people
Biological and medical sciences
Drug Addiction
Heroin
Medical sciences
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Rehabilitation
U.S.A
Veterans
Vietnam
Vietnam War
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Summary:Between 1972 and 1974, the outcomes of army enlisted men who had served in Vietnam during 1970–71 were evaluated and compared with that of a matched group. This paper reports the major findings of that study with respect to frequency of narcotic addiction in and after Vietnam, and the major risk factors for Vietnam addiction and later relapse. Extraordinary access to records facilitated drawing the sample, locating it, and verifying interview responses. The surprisingly low levels of readdiction and the rarity of addiction to narcotics alone as compared with poly‐substance dependence are findings still not entirely incorporated into public and scientific views of heroin addiction. Some defenses against that incorporation are examined.
ISSN:0965-2140
1360-0443
DOI:10.1111/j.1360-0443.1993.tb02123.x