War-induced psychic trauma: An 18-year follow-up of Israeli veterans.

Abstract

Eighteen years after their participation in the Yom Kippur War, the psychiatric status of two groups of Israeli veterans--112 combat stress reaction casualties and 189 comparable controls--was assessed. Casualties had higher rates and greater intensity of posttraumatic stress disorder than did controls, both initially and at 18-year follow-up. Similarly, intrusion and avoidance tendencies and psychiatric symptomatology were evidenced more often by combat stress reaction casualties than by controls. Clinical implications of the findings are discussed.

Twelve‐Year Follow‐up Study of Khmer Youths Who Suffered Massive War Trauma as Children

“…A large number of PTSD follow-up studies of warrelated trauma in adults are uniform in demonstrating the chronic nature of this syndrome: prisoners of war (Tennant et al, 1997); concentration camp survivors (Drozdek, 1997); Vietnam veterans (Grayson et al, 1996); Operation Desert Storm veterans (Southwick et al, 1995); World War II veterans (Leeet al, 1995); and Yom Kippur War veterans (Solomon and Kleinhauz, 1996). Amir et al (1996) showed that battle-derived PTSD appeared to be the most severe form of trauma when its victims were compared with victims of terrorism, traffic accidents, and work-related accidents in adults.…”

Acute stress responses: A review and synthesis of ASD, ASR, and CSR.

“…Eighteen years after the Yom Kippur War, CSR veterans were found have lower PTSD recovery rates than comparable control veterans; 37% of the veterans with antecedent CSR reported to have suffered from PTSD, compared to 23% of the comparable veterans without a diagnosis of CSR (Solomon & Kleinhauz, 1996). Furthermore, these veterans with CSR also had higher rates of physical symptoms, adverse health practices (Neria, & Koenen, 2003) and general psychiatric symptoms (Neriaet al, 2000).…”

From the Frontline to the Homefront: The Experience of Israeli Veterans

“…It has been argued that CSR is a rational reaction to an irrational situation (1) where once the distressed soldier is removed from the stressors of war, they will regain their equilibrium and functionality (10,12). To the best of my knowledge, the majority of largescale prospective studies of CSR have been conducted in Israel involving combatants from the 1973 Yom Kippur War [e.g., (13)] and the 1982 Lebanon War [e.g., (2,8)]. In particular, in the Yom Kippur study, CSR casualties were identified as a high-risk group for PTSD and other psychiatric and somatic co-morbidities (13).…”

“…To the best of my knowledge, the majority of largescale prospective studies of CSR have been conducted in Israel involving combatants from the 1973 Yom Kippur War [e.g., (13)] and the 1982 Lebanon War [e.g., (2,8)]. In particular, in the Yom Kippur study, CSR casualties were identified as a high-risk group for PTSD and other psychiatric and somatic co-morbidities (13).…”