The Long‐Term Effects of Operation Desert Storm on the Psychological Distress of U.S. Army Reserve and National Guard Veterans1

Abstract

This study assessed factors related to the long‐term psychological health of a sample of U.S. Army National Guard and Reserve Unit veterans who served during Operation Desert Storm (ODS). In the analysis, general distress symptom measures were obtained and comparisons made from soldiers who deployed to Germany, the Persian Gulf region, and throughout the United States, with soldiers who did not deploy. Elevated symptom levels were found for veterans of the Persian Gulf that could not be explained by variance attributed to demographics, or current life stress events. Reported exposure and the degree of current concern due to petrochemical fires in Kuwait were found to be significantly related to elevated symptom measures beyond the effect of combat‐zone‐related stresses. These findings suggest that a subset of Persian Gulf reserve veterans continue to have elevated levels of distress that are related to oil fire exposure.