Forty-year follow-up of United States prisoners of war.
The authors performed structured psychiatric examinations of 188 former prisoners of war (POWs). Sixty-seven percent had had posttraumatic stress disorder. Of those affected, 29% had fully recovered, 39% still reported mild symptoms, 24% had improved but had moderate residual symptoms, and 8% had had no recovery or had deteriorated. Presence of posttraumatic stress disorder was not significantly correlated with other mental disorders. Delayed onset was not seen. The findings confirm the DSM-III concept of and criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder.
D002908:Chronic Disease; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology; D008910:Minnesota; D010555:Personality Inventory; D011329:Prisoners; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D014857:Warfare