Subject(s)
Adaptation, Physiological/drug effects , Antidepressive Agents/adverse effects , Depressive Disorder, Major/drug therapy , Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects , Adult , Antidepressive Agents/therapeutic use , Apgar Score , Depressive Disorder, Major/psychology , Female , Humans , Hypoxia/chemically induced , Infant, Newborn , Pregnancy , Pregnancy ComplicationsSubject(s)
Antipsychotic Agents/therapeutic use , Pregnancy Complications/drug therapy , Puerperal Disorders/drug therapy , Schizophrenia/drug therapy , Adult , Dibenzothiazepines/therapeutic use , Female , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Infanticide/prevention & control , Infanticide/psychology , Pregnancy , Pregnancy Complications/psychology , Psychotic Disorders/drug therapy , Psychotic Disorders/psychology , Puerperal Disorders/psychology , Quetiapine Fumarate , Risk Assessment , Risk Factors , Schizophrenia/diagnosis , Schizophrenic Psychology , Secondary Prevention , Social SupportABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: This study compares rates of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in female veterans who had military sexual trauma (MST) with rates of PTSD in women veterans with all other types of trauma. METHODS: Subjects were recruited at the Women's Comprehensive Healthcare Center when attending medical or psychiatric appointments or through a mailing; 230 women agreed and 196 completed the study. They completed questionnaires on health and military history, along with the Stressful Life Events Questionnaire (SLEQ). Those who met DSM-IV PTSD Criterion A completed the PTSD Symptom Scale-Interview (PSS-I) on which PTSD diagnoses were based. RESULTS: Ninety-two percent reported at least 1 trauma. Forty-one percent had MST, alone or with other trauma, and 90% had other trauma, with or without MST. Overall, 43% of subjects with trauma had PTSD. Those with MST had higher rates of PTSD than those with other trauma. Sixty percent of those with MST had PTSD; 43% of subjects with other traumas (with or without MST) had PTSD. Military sexual trauma and other trauma both significantly predicted PTSD in regression analyses (P=.0001 and .02, respectively) but MST predicted it more strongly. Prior trauma did not contribute to the relationship between MST and PTSD. DISCUSSION: Findings suggest that MST is common and that it is a trauma especially associated with PTSD.
Subject(s)
Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic/epidemiology , Veterans , Women , Adult , Aged , Ethnicity , Female , Humans , Middle Aged , Military Personnel , Sex Offenses/statistics & numerical data , United States/epidemiology , Wounds and Injuries/classification , Wounds and Injuries/epidemiologyABSTRACT
This study examines relationships among military sexual trauma (MST), nonmilitary sexual trauma, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A sample of 196 female veterans was assessed for trauma occurring before, during, and after military service, and for current PTSD. The prevalence of MST was higher than that of premilitary and postmilitary sexual trauma. Premilitary trauma did not significantly increase the odds of experiencing MST, but did increase the odds of experiencing postmilitary sexual trauma. Logistic regression analyses revealed MST was more strongly associated with PTSD than was premilitary or postmilitary trauma. Women with MST had the greatest increased odds of developing PTSD. Understanding risk factors for and taking steps to prevent MST may reduce cases of PTSD in female veterans.
