Stress Disorder In Vietnam Veterans Research Articles

The psychophysiology of combat-induced post-traumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans

The psychophysiological responses of heart rate (HR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure, skin conductance level and forehead electromyogram were compared during: rest, mental arithmetic and combat sounds of gradually increasing intensity for five groups of Ss: Vietnam veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); Vietnam veterans without PTSD but with comparable levels of combat experience; Vietnam veterans with other psychiatric disorders; Vietnam-era veterans; and nonveteran phobics. HR response to low-intensity combat sounds provided good discrimination between veterans with PTSD and the other groups and seems to resemble a conditioned emotional response.

Diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans

Diagnosis of posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans

A study of post traumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans.

Three groups of Vietnam-era veterans were compared on the frequency of symptoms typical of the diagnostic criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a diagnostic category introduced in DSM III (N = 90). The three groups consisted of veterans who had experienced (a) a war-related traumatic event; (b) a non-war-related traumatic event; or (c) no traumatic event. The results indicated that the two groups who experienced a traumatic event reported significantly more symptoms than the group who never experienced a traumatic event. Furthermore, the group who experienced a war-related traumatic event reported more symptoms than the group who experienced a non-war-related traumatic event. These results support the validity of PTSD.

Etiology of posttraumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans: analysis of premilitary, military, and combat exposure influences.

Etiology of posttraumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans: analysis of premilitary, military, and combat exposure influences.

Etiology of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Vietnam veterans: Analysis of premilitary, military, and combat exposure influences.

Etiology of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Vietnam veterans: Analysis of premilitary, military, and combat exposure influences.

Post‐traumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans: Assessment in a forensic setting

AbstractThe recognition and proper evaluation of Vietnam veterans' demonstrating Post‐Traumatic Stress Disorder syndromes is reviewed. The special problems of accurate diagnosis and assessment of former Vietnam combatants is emphasized. The forensic evaluation of Vietnam veterans' raising the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder syndrome in either civil or criminal proceedings is comprehensively discussed. The question “What are the clinical techniques necessary to accomplish a competent forensic evaluation of the Vietnam veterans?” is specifically addressed with special emphasis on legal dispositions and treatment implications. The relationship between the criminal acts of combat veterans and their exposure to the psychological trauma of war is explored.

Validation of a multimethod assessment of posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.

Veterans Administration Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi andUniversity of Mississippi Medical CenterThere appears to be a high incidence of posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD)in Vietnam veterans. Yet there is little information available on the reliability andvalidity of any approach to the assessment of these combat-related stress disorders.The present study was designed to determine if responses to the presentation ofmild combat stimuli would distinguish the following three carefully matchedgroups of veterans: (a) those with an exclusive diagnosis of PTSD, (b) inpatientson a psychiatry ward who clearly do not have PTSD, and (c) Vietnam veteranswith combat experience who are currently well adjusted. Behavioral, physiolog-ical, and self-report measures of anxiety obtained through this laboratory-basedassessment clearly distinguished the PTSD veterans from the remaining two crit-ical comparison groups. The utility of this tripartite assessment approach for thereliable identification of PTSD secondary to combat is discussed. Future researchdirections are presented.Posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD) aredenned as the maladaptive emotional re-sponse that an individual may experience fol-lowing a discrete traumatic event. The dis-order is characterized by persistently high lev-els of anxiety, intrusive recollections of theevent through nightmares or flashbacks, ex-aggerated startle responses, severe sleep dis-turbances, avoidance of close interpersonalcontact, depression and guilt, constricted af-fect, and impairment of memory and con-centration abilities (cf. Diagnostic and Sta-tistical Manual of Mental Disorders—DSM-III; American Psychiatric Association, 1980).Traumatic events that can lead to a stressdisorder include vehicular accidents, naturaldisasters, rape, and combat. Many Vietnamveterans were exposed to severely traumaticevents during combat, and in addition ex-perienced considerable hostility and lack ofsupport upon return home. As a result, atleast 24% of Vietnam veterans surveyed re-

Validation of a multimethod assessment of posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.

Veterans Administration Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi andUniversity of Mississippi Medical CenterThere appears to be a high incidence of posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD)in Vietnam veterans. Yet there is little information available on the reliability andvalidity of any approach to the assessment of these combat-related stress disorders.The present study was designed to determine if responses to the presentation ofmild combat stimuli would distinguish the following three carefully matchedgroups of veterans: (a) those with an exclusive diagnosis of PTSD, (b) inpatientson a psychiatry ward who clearly do not have PTSD, and (c) Vietnam veteranswith combat experience who are currently well adjusted. Behavioral, physiolog-ical, and self-report measures of anxiety obtained through this laboratory-basedassessment clearly distinguished the PTSD veterans from the remaining two crit-ical comparison groups. The utility of this tripartite assessment approach for thereliable identification of PTSD secondary to combat is discussed. Future researchdirections are presented.Posttraumatic stress disorders (PTSD) aredenned as the maladaptive emotional re-sponse that an individual may experience fol-lowing a discrete traumatic event. The dis-order is characterized by persistently high lev-els of anxiety, intrusive recollections of theevent through nightmares or flashbacks, ex-aggerated startle responses, severe sleep dis-turbances, avoidance of close interpersonalcontact, depression and guilt, constricted af-fect, and impairment of memory and con-centration abilities (cf. Diagnostic and Sta-tistical Manual of Mental Disorders—DSM-III; American Psychiatric Association, 1980).Traumatic events that can lead to a stressdisorder include vehicular accidents, naturaldisasters, rape, and combat. Many Vietnamveterans were exposed to severely traumaticevents during combat, and in addition ex-perienced considerable hostility and lack ofsupport upon return home. As a result, atleast 24% of Vietnam veterans surveyed re-

A psychophysiological study of post traumatic stress disorder in Vietnam veterans.

Comparisons were made between a group of male Vietnam veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (n = 11) and an age and sex matched group of non-veteran controls (n = 11) on their psychophysiological responding (heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), forehead EMG, skin resistance level, and peripheral temperature) to mental arithmetic and an audiotape of combat sounds played at gradually increasing volume levels. The two groups responded differently to the combat sounds in terms of HR, systolic BP, and forehead EMG. The HR response could correctly classify 95.5% of the combined sample. Implications of these findings for the basis of PTSD are discussed.

A selected bibliography on posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.

A selected bibliography on posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.

A selected bibliography on posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.

A selected bibliography on posttraumatic stress disorders in Vietnam veterans.