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Articles: Leaving Military: Veterans

Study: Half of war vets have psych issues

Kelly Kennedy, mariane Corp Times

Jun 4, 2007

More than half of a sample of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans
returned from the combat zones with mental health issues, and one in
four had other health concerns, according to a new study from the
American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.

Researchers Drew Helmer and his colleagues looked at 56 veterans 45
men and 11 women of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Doctors at
the War-Related Illness and Injury Study Center at the VA New Jersey
Health Care System performed exams on each veteran.

Researchers looked at 17 active-duty veterans with an average age of
28, and 39 reservists with an average age of 36. The active-duty
veterans deployed on average for eight months, while the reservists
deployed for 15 months.

The researchers found an average of four health problems per veteran,
with musculoskeletal problems being the most common. According to the
Defense Department, musculoskeletal problems are also the top reason
soldiers get out of the Army on medical discharges. Ear, nose and
throat problems, as well as gastrointestinal injuries, were next on the list.

Of those assessed, 55 percent were diagnosed with a mental health
concern. Forty-nine percent of the reservists had post-traumatic
stress disorder, compared to 35 percent of the active-duty veterans.
Other studies have suggested longer deployments may contribute to
higher rates of PTSD.

The veterans also averaged 2.7 concerns about potentially hazardous
exposures, such as burning trash, human waste, vaccinations and
depleted uranium. The researchers found that veterans worried about
the long-term health problems associated with exposures to those
materials but only a few had health problems now because of them.

Helmer and his colleagues recommended screening for musculoskeletal
issues during post-deployment exams and also called for military
health care providers to better educate themselves about potentially
hazardous exposure to wartime environmental substances.

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