title: Substance use and other mental health disorders among veterans returning to the inner city: prevalence, correlates, and rates of unmet treatment need.
abstract: Estimates of substance use and other mental health disorders of veterans (N = 269) who returned to predominantly low-income minority New York City neighborhoods between 2009 and 2012 are presented. Although prevalences of posttraumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and depression clustered around 20%, the estimated prevalence rates of alcohol use disorder, drug use disorder, and substance use disorder were 28%, 18%, and 32%, respectively. Only about 40% of veterans with any diagnosed disorder received some form of treatment. For alcohol use disorder, the estimate of unmet treatment need was 84%, which is particularly worrisome given that excessive alcohol use was the greatest substance use problem.
authors.affiliation: National Development and Research Institutes, New York, New York 10010, USA. vazan@ndri.org
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vazan
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Golub
authors.forename: Alex S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Bennett
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D055826:Afghan Campaign 2001-; D017831:Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry) / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D009519:New York City / Q000453:epidemiology; D011203:Poverty / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*