title: Overview of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and alcohol misuse among active duty service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, self-report and diagnosis.
abstract: Previous studies have found deployment to combat areas to be associated with an increased risk of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and alcohol abuse, but many previous studies were limited by samples that were not representative of the deployed military as a whole. This study presents an overview of these three mental health problems associated with deployment among Air Force, Army, Marine Corp, and Navy service members returning from deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan between January 2007 and March 2008. With postdeployment health data on over 50,000 service men and women, including diagnostic information, we were able to estimate prevalence of those who screened positive for risk of each disorder in self-report data at two time points, as well as prevalence of diagnoses received during health care encounters within the military health care system. The prevalence ranges of the three disorders were consistent with previous studies using similar measures, but service members in the Navy had higher rates of screening positive for all three disorders and higher prevalence of depression and PTSD diagnoses compared to the other branches. Further, PTSD risk was higher for service members returning from Afghanistan compared to Iraq, in contrast to previous findings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, University of Notre Dame, 810 Flanner Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556.
authors.forename: Sarah A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Mustillo
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, Purdue University, 700 West State Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907.
authors.forename: Ashleigh
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kysar-Moon
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University, Peabody No. 151, 230 Appleton Place, Nashville, TN 37203.
authors.forename: Susan R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Douglas
authors.affiliation: Vanderbilt University, Peabody No. 151, 230 Appleton Place, Nashville, TN 37203.
authors.forename: Ryan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hargraves
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, University of Notre Dame, 810 Flanner Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556.
authors.forename: Shelley MacDermid
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Wadsworth
authors.affiliation: Behavioral Health Branch, Clinical Support Directorate, Defense Health Agency, 7700 Arlington Boulevard Falls Church, VA 22042.
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fraine
authors.affiliation: Behavioral Health Branch, Clinical Support Directorate, Defense Health Agency, 7700 Arlington Boulevard Falls Church, VA 22042.
authors.forename: Nicole L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Frazer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D055826:Afghan Campaign 2001-; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D059026:Diagnostic Self Evaluation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D054542:Iraq War, 2003-2011; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008889:Military Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D009784:Occupational Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015995:Prevalence; D057566:Self Report; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology