title: Somatic symptoms and health-related quality of life among treatment-seeking Canadian Forces personnel with PTSD.
abstract: This study examined the association between somatic complaints and health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) in treatment-seeking Canadian military personnel with military-related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Current and former Canadian Forces (CF) members attending the Parkwood Hospital Operational Stress Injury Clinic in London, Ontario (N=291) were administered self-report questionnaires assessing number and severity of somatic complaints, PTSD and depressive symptom severity, and mental and physical health-related quality of life (HR-QoL) prior to commencing treatment. Regression analyses were used to identify the role of somatic complaints on physical and mental HR-QoL, after controlling for PTSD symptom cluster and depressive symptom severity. Somatic symptom severity accounted for only a small amount of the variance in mental HR-QoL after accounting for PTSD symptom cluster and depressive symptom severity, but accounted for a larger proportion of the variance in physical HR-QoL after accounting for PTSD cluster and depressive symptom severity. Understanding the role of somatization in the symptom-presentation of military personnel with PTSD may provide additional avenues for treatment with this population.
authors.affiliation: Parkwood Hospital Operational Stress Injury Clinic, St. Joseph׳s Health Care, London, Ontario, Canada. Electronic address: katherine.stcyr@sjhc.london.on.ca.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: St Cyr
authors.affiliation: Parkwood Hospital Operational Stress Injury Clinic, St. Joseph׳s Health Care, London, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McIntyre-Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Ateka A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Contractor
authors.affiliation: Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Jon D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Elhai
authors.affiliation: Parkwood Hospital Operational Stress Injury Clinic, St. Joseph׳s Health Care, London, Ontario, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: J Don
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Richardson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002170:Canada / Q000453:epidemiology; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009864:Ontario; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D057566:Self Report; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D063189:Symptom Assessment
keywords: Major depressive disorder; Military; Posttraumatic stress disorder; Symptom severity