Stress rate revised for Vietnam vets
By Bruce Bower
Inspired by a long-standing controversy over estimates of the number of psychiatric casualties among Vietnam veterans, a research team has determined that overall, about 19 percent of those military personnel developed a serious war-related stress disorder. Furthermore, half of that group still suffered from the condition, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 11 to 12 years after the war ended in 1975, say psychiatric epidemiologist Bruce P. Dohrenwend of Columbia University and his coworkers.
The scientists reanalyzed data from a 1988 study of 1,200 Vietnam vets. That investigation found that 31 percent of the vets had developed PTSD at some time after their military service and that 15 percent had the disorder at the time of the study. Some researchers have suggested that the national study inflated prevalence rates.