DIAGNOSTIC MARKERS CONTINUUM OF THE SOCIALLY-DISADAPTATIVE POST-COMBAT SYNDROME

Abstract

Abstract. Background. The increased need for the diagnosis of mental disorders associated with hostilities has arisen in Ukraine since 2014 in connection with Russia's unprovoked invasion. During the Anti-Terrorist Operation, and later – the Operation of the United Forces, the combatants of Ukraine encountered a wide range of the newest methods of war, which are capable of leaving an imprint on the human psyche. For more than 7 years, we have been able to observe a number of specific continuums of psychopathological phenomena, one of them being Socially-Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome. Aim: to investigate the diagnostic continuum of markers of Socially-Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome in combatants of Ukraine. Material and methods. 382 combatants who were involved in the Anti-Terrorist Operation / Combined Forces Operation were examined at the Zaporizhzhia Military Hospital and Zaporizhzhia State Medical University between 2015 and 2021. We compared the identified markers of Socially-Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome (SDPS) with ICD-10 markers of similar mental disorders: enduring personality change after catastrophic experience (F62.0), PTSD (F43.1), and adjustment disorders (F43.2). Results. We established a continuum of symptoms and identified 23 markers of Socially-Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome, of which 9 are significant in the context of differential diagnosis. The provoking factors and features of the debut of Socially- Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome, as well as its consequences, were also described by us. We determined the differences between post-combat social maladjustment syndrome and similar disorders that combatants suffer from in order to improve timely diagnosis, prognosis and development of treatment methods. Conclusions. Today, we report on the identification in combatants of Ukraine Socially-Disadaptive Post-Combat syndrome. This syndrome has clear differential differences from a related group of disorders and requires further clarification of the tactics of its treatment.