Predicting mental illness in soldiers: Pre-deployment screening for vulnerability to post- traumatic stress disorder

doi:10.1136/bmj.39037.702211.3A

BMJ 2006;333:1123 (25 November), doi:10.1136/bmj.39037.702211.3A

Letters

Predicting mental illness in soldiers

Pre-deployment screening for vulnerability to post- traumatic stress disorder

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Rona et al have conducted an important studyof UK military personnel with a large, statistically powerfulcohort.¹ Hyams points out the confounding "healthy warrior"effect.² This, together with the marked differences betweenconscripted and volunteer groups, makes it difficult to extrapolatefindings from the first and second world wars to the modernera. Nevertheless, there is a powerful message that post-traumaticstress disorder (and other mental disorders) are difficult topredict, with the implication that ex-service personnel arelikely to present to civilian mental health services with suchconditions. As a substance misuse service, we have seen post-traumaticstress disorder with drug and alcohol misuse as the index symptomin several such people and have found Combat Stress (based inLeatherhead, Surrey) a very useful organisation, not least becauseof the ability to tap into the "healthy warrior" effect throughgroup and individual therapies, allowing us to treat the . . . [Full text of this article]

Ferhal Utku, Ken Checinski, senior lecturer in addictive behaviour

¹ St George's, University of London, London SW17 0RE

futku@sgul.ac.uk

CiteULike

Complore

Connotea

Del.icio.us Add to Digg

Digg

StumbleUpon Add to Technorati

Technorati What's this?

Relevant Articles

Mental health screening before troop deployment: Is not supported by current evidence: Kenneth Craig Hyams
BMJ 2006 333: 979-980. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Mental health screening in armed forces before the Iraq war and prevention of subsequent psychological morbidity: follow-up study: Roberto J Rona, Richard Hooper, Margaret Jones, Lisa Hull, Tess Browne, Oded Horn, Dominic Murphy, Matthew Hotopf, and Simon Wessely
BMJ 2006 333: 991. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]