Troop hospitalizations show mental toll of war

Troop hospitalizations show mental toll of war
By WYATT OLSON
Stars and Stripes
Published: July 1, 2012

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — Hospitalizations of troops with mental disorders such as suicidal or homicidal intent and debilitating psychosis reached a 10-year high in 2011, underscoring the mental and emotional toll of America’s dual wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center says 13,133 servicemembers were treated as inpatients last year for mental disorders, the top reason for hospitalization of active-duty troops. That was up from 10,706 in 2007.

The total number of hospitalizations for mental disorders in 2011 was about 21,700, suggesting that many patients were treated more than once, based on annual data from a recently released Medical Surveillance Monthly Report.

The number of visits for outpatient mental health treatment has also ballooned, almost doubling from just under 1 million in 2007 to about 1.89 million in 2011, the report revealed.

The number of hospitalizations is almost certainly higher because it does not include inpatient treatment of mental disorders during deployments or field training exercises, or on ships at sea.
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