Psychological and Neurobiological Consequences of the Gulf War Experience.
Abstract
The following grant application is composed of two parts: The first part is a follow-along descriptive study of trauma-related symptomatology in veterans of Operation Desert Storm. The second part is an investigation of memory function and hippocampal volume in veterans of Operation Desert Storm who meet criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although PTSD is a common disorder, relatively little is known about its natural history. Cross sectional descriptive studies have made it clear that stress-related symptoms are often problematic even decades after a catastrophic event. For example, in a large community sample of Vietnam theater veterans nearly twenty years after the war, Kulka et al (1) found that 15% met diagnostic criteria for PTSD and another 15% for partial PTSD. Chronic trauma-related symptomatology also has been reported in survivors of the Holocaust (2-4), natural disasters (5,6), accidents (7,8), and violent crime (9,10). While cross-sectional studies are highly informative, they are not designed to investigate the natural course of a disorder. Similarly, retrospective approaches are subject to the problem of inaccurate recall. Prospective studies, on the other hand, are ideal for collecting detailed information about the evolution and course of psychiatric symptoms and syndromes.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA348846
Entities
People
- Steven Southwick