PSYCHIATRIC SYNDROMES IN PERSIAN-GULF-WAR VETERANS - AN ASSOCIATION OF HANDLING DEAD BODIES WITH SOMATOFORM DISORDERS

Background: Traumatic combat experience has been associated with the d evelopment of posttraumatic stress disorder, but there have been few s tudies about the association of military combat experience and the dev elopment of somatoform disorders. Methods: The authors evaluated 131 r eferred Gulf War veterans for medical and psychiatric syndromes though t related to their involvement in the Gulf War. Patients completed que stionnaires regarding their traumatic experiences and were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM III-R. Results: For t he sample, 69% had axis I conditions. Major depression, undifferentiat ed somatoform and posttraumatic stress disorders were the most common diagnoses. Reports of traumatic events were associated with both postt raumatic stress disorder (p < 0.05) and somatoform diagnoses (p < 0.05 ). Veterans who handled dead bodies had a 3-fold risk of receiving a s omatoform diagnosis (p < 0.05), Conclusions: Psychiatric syndromes may explain some medical complaints following involvement in the Persian Gulf War. The results suggest that some psychological and nonspecific somatic symptoms persisting since the Gulf War may be related to expos ure to psychological trauma.