Iraq troops return in mental turmoil
By MATTHEW HICKLEY - More by this author »
Last updated at 22:06pm on 15th January 2008
Tens of thousands of troops are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a major study.
Researchers tracked 50,000 U.S. service personnel over six years to measure the impact military operations had on their mental health.
They found that almost one in ten of those exposed to combat developed symptoms of the crippling psychiatric condition.
Tens of thousands of troops are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan suffering from post traumatic stress disorder
If the same pattern is reflected among the 120,000 UK personnel sent to Iraq and Afghanistan over the same period more than 10,000 can be expected to experience problems with PTSD.
Charities dealing with traumatised veterans warned yesterday that many published statistics significantly under-estimate the problem.
They say soldiers often suffer in silence for a long time - waiting an average of 13 years after they leave the military before seeking help.
Post-traumatic stress disorder can shatter soldiers' lives, with symptoms including flashbacks, sleeplessness, depression and severe mood swings wreaking havoc on their family and careers.
The latest study - published in today's British Medical Journal - is the work of academics in San Diego, who tracked 50,000 American military personnel from 2001 onwards, interviewing them repeatedly at intervals.
They found the highest rates of newly-developed PTSD - around 9 per cent - among combat troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.
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We've had over a million in and out of Iraq and Afghanistan. They had 120,000. Do you think we have a problem yet?
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